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THE 


™E f . ’ 

Life of Father Bernard,^ 

MISSIONARY PRIEST 

OF THE 

Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. 

THE 

AFOSTOLATE OF A REDEMPTORIST. 


F/ . 


BY 


P. CLAESSENS, 

\ i 

Canon of the Metropolitan Church of Mechlin. , 


“Seest thou that faith did co-operate with his works: and by works faith was 
made perfect ? ”— St. James ii. 22. 


TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH, 


NEW YORK: 

THE CATHOLIC PUBLICATION SOCIETY, 

9 Warren Street. 

1875. .. 


% 



« 


Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1875, by 
THE CATHOLIC PUBLICATION SOCIETY, 

Jii the Office of ihe Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. 


CONTENTS, 


Introduction,. 

I. Bernard’s Childhood,. 

II. Bernard’s Education at Hageveld, . 

III. Bernard enters the Roman College, 

IV. Bernard is ordained Priest, and receives the De¬ 

gree of Doctor of Theology, . . . . 

V. Religious Vocation. He enters the Congregation 
of the Most Holy Redeemer, . . . . 

VI. Father Bernard’s Professorship at Saint Trond. 

His Apostolic Career in Belgium, 

VH. Father Bernard’s Apostolate in Holland, 

VHI. Father Bernard’s First Voyage to America, 

IX. Father Bernard resumes his Apostolic Labors in 

Belgium,. 

, X. Father Bernard’s Apostolate in the United States, . 
XI. Father Bernard’s Apostolate in the United States, 

continued, . .. 

XH. Apostolate of Father Bernard in Great Britain and 

the Netherlands,. 

XHI. Father Bernard as Priest and Religious, 

XIV. Father Bernard’s Tender Devotion to the Mother 
of God,. 


PAGE. 

• 7 

17 

24 

. 29 

39 

46 

62 

85 

lOI 

III 

116 

124 

131 

137 


. 147 




6 


, Contents. 


PAGE. 

XV. Father Bernard’s Last Illness and Hol)^ Death, . 157 
XVI. General Observations on the Work of the Missions, 177 

APPENDIX. 

A. Testimony given to Father Bernard by the Rector of 

the Roman College,.193 

B. Explanation of a Passage in the Letter of the Most 

Rev. Father Passerat,.194 

C. The Convent at Wittem. Father Bernard in the 

Netherlands,.197 

D. Missions of the Redemptorists in Holland, . . 202 

E. Fathers Passerat, De Held, and Dechamps, . . 215 

F. Letter of the Rev. Father de Held, Provincial of Bel¬ 

gium, to the Rev. Father Victor Dechamps, Rector 
of the Redemptorist Convent in Liege, . . . 228 

G. Notice of Father Poilvache, by Rev. Father Gillet, . 244 

H. Mission at Heiken,.250 

I. A Few Observations relative to the Work of the Mis¬ 

sions, .255 

J. Oratio ad Matrem Divini Pastoris, utiliter dicenda a 

Patribus in Visitatione Beatissimae Virginis, Tem¬ 
pore Missionis,.266 

K. Account of Father Bernard’s Third Voyage to Ame¬ 

rica, given in a Letter from Rev. Father Dold to the 
Father Rector of the Convent at Wittem, . . 269 





INTRODUCTION. 


' j ''HE author of this sketch begs the kind in- 
dulgence of his readers for introducing at 
the outset an incident of his early ecclesiastical 
career. While pursuing in the Catholic univer¬ 
sity the studies which he had commenced in the 
seminary, it was his custom to devote a part of 
his academic vacation to visiting hamlets and 
villages, particularly those in which he hoped to 
collect some details interesting to him as a 
priest, and to become acquainted with the re¬ 
ligious life of the inhabitants of the country. 

In the summer of 1841 he accompanied an 
ecclesiastic of Northern Brabant to the ancient 
barony of Breda, and while there enjoyed the 
kind hospitality of the venerable prelate who 
then governed the Diocese of Breda in the ca¬ 
pacity of vicar-apostolic. 



8 


Introduction. 


Mgr. Van Hooydonck delighted to speak of 
the excellent spirit of the inhabitants of those 
parts, who remained profoundly Catholic, not¬ 
withstanding the harassing war of persecution 
which Calvinistic intolerance had waged against 
them from the time of William the Silent until 
the reign of good King Louis. “And this tra¬ 
ditional spirit of our fathers,” he added, “ is 
reanimated to-day by the zeal of my diocesan 
clergy, and by the apostolic labors of the sons 
of Saint Alphonsus de Liguori. 

“ Not many years ago the religious habit was 
entirely unknown here, and even our secular 
priests met with many difficulties. It is now no 
longer so. Thanks to a beginning of justice on 
the part of the existing government, we enjoy 
sufficient freedom of worship, at least in the in¬ 
terior of our churches, and we are, moreover, 
allowed to save souls by means of retreats and 
regular missions, which are conducted by the 
fathers. 

“ The Redemptorists have accomplished for 
us incalculable good; they are, I assure you, 
the fishers of men, priests of holy skill in draw¬ 
ing the multitude to the altar, masters perfect in 


Introduction. 


9 


the art of healing souls in the tribunal of pen¬ 
ance, and guiding them in the path to heaven, 

‘ not in loftiness of speech^ but in the showing of 
the Spirit and of power.' ” 

The following day the Bishop went to a 
populous parish in the deanery of Berg-op- 
Zoom, to preside at the closing of a mission 
which had lasted for ten days, and he wished 
to procure us the pleasure of witnessing this 
touching solemnity. 

Happy at receiving the invitation, we repaired 
to the place, and, having made the acquaintance 
of the pastor through Mgr. Van Hooydonck, 
we were seated in the sanctuary of the church-, 
which we found thronged with the faithful de¬ 
voutly reciting the rosary. 

The prayers being concluded, a priest, still in 
the prime of life, ascended the pulpit. He was a 
religious, armed with his mission cross, whose 
mere aspect impressed me deeply. It was the 
same father whose portrait I had seen in many 
Brabant families, and of whom they related many 
marvellous things. That majestic bearing, that 
intellectual and manly countenance, that noble 
brow, that burnin g look which he cast on the 


10 


Introduction. 


assembly, as if measuring the field of an impend¬ 
ing battle, that solemn sign of the cross, and the 
sacred words, “ Behold, thou art made whole; go 
and sin no more,” followed by an address, or 
rather a long discourse, delivered in a vibrat¬ 
ing, clear, and singularly sympathetic voice, with 
manly gesticulation and expressive action, which 
placed before us a living representation of the 
celebrated Peres Bridaine and Beauregard—all so 
deeply impressed me that more than thirty years 
have not been able to obliterate the remembrance 
of the scene. I shared the emotion of the peo¬ 
ple, and thanked God for having given such 
power of word and work to one of his servants. 
The discourse itself was not lofty, “ Noxi in 
sublimitate sermonis.'' but was truly apostolic. I 
have never heard another popular preacher rising 
to such a height of eloquence and speaking so 
well to the point. 

This priest, whom I heard for the first time in 
the church of Steenbergen, and whom I had the 
happiness to hear afterwards on many occasions, 
both in humble country churches and in the more 
magnificent ones of large cities, was none other 
than the compatriot, the old schoolmate, and in- 



Introduction^ 


II 


timate friend of my professor, Dr. John Theo¬ 
dore Beelen; it was Bernard Joseph Hafken- 
scheid, better known as Father Bernard, of the 
Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. 

To form an idea of Father Bernard’s elo¬ 
quence, it would be necessary to be present at 
his sermons. It is said that eloquence proceeds 
from the heart; as for him, the heart was love of 
God, of the Church, and of souls. Scarcely had 
he pronounced his text, when all eyes were fixed 
on him, his hearers listening to him because they^ 
understood him. He commenced calmly, but 
by degrees grew animated, and, on coming to the 
main point of his subject, he abandoned himself 
without restraint to the impassioned flights of 
his zeal and of his gifted soul. It was the Gos¬ 
pel, it was the Fathers, Jesus Christ, the Church, 
that spoke by his mouth. The sublime truths 
of faith, the eternal maxims, assumed, as it were, 
a living form in energetic and manly language, 
in expressions sometimes incorrect and unpolish¬ 
ed, but always plain, and occasionally border¬ 
ing on the familiar. His style was marked 
by certain , peculiarities which did not always 
accord with the rules of oratory, and which 


12 


Introduction. 


would not always please, if in sacred elo- 
quence there were question of any other art 
than that of saving souls, in which he certainly 
excelled. At times silence and gesture alone 
spoke more forcibly than words. The orator 
knew the most hidden recesses of the human 
heart, and seemed by his penetrating look to 
read one’s inmost thoughts. Sometimes he ter¬ 
rified the conscience by portraying the everlast¬ 
ing punishments that divine justice had in reserve 
for the hardened sinner; again he inspired con¬ 
fidence and hope by describing the divine mer¬ 
cies and the joys of heaven. He was not satis¬ 
fied with abstract or vague ideas, but, insisting 
on the truths of Christianity, he taught the 
practice of virtue without any modification or 
exaggeration. He attacked with vehemence 
some particular vice, as blasphemy, intemperance, 
and similar scandals, ^and was so skilful in in¬ 
spiring a horror for sin that even those who came 
to the church through curiosity, or with evil dis¬ 
positions, were frequently seized with remorse, 
and felt the first operations of grace. As soon as 
he saw his audience in tears (and it is said he 
possessed an especial talent to effect this when 


Introduction. 


n 


he wished ) he grew more animated, he redoubled 
his efforts, for he knew that the moment of vic¬ 
tory was at hand. He no longer made use of 
threats or of gloomy pictures, but poured the 
balm of hope into hearts which he had just 
wounded ; and when he had made the desired 
impression upon his hearers, he descended from 
the pulpit to receive in the confessional the con¬ 
fidence of the penitent, and to rescue his soul 
frorn perdition. 

Father Bernard was occupied for more than 
thirty years in the work of the holy missions. 
He travelled through Holland, his native country ; 
through Belgium, his country by adoption ; a part 
of Germany, England, Ireland, and North Amer¬ 
ica, everywhere doing good, announcing the Word 
of God with rare lustre and with a success which 
X was almost miraculous. 

His apostolic voice resounded in the two 
worlds. Everywhere it conquered hearts, pene¬ 
trated into the depths of the conscience, bent 
before the cross the brow of the learned, 
evangelized the poor and the ignorant; and 
when his beautiful soul entered the heavenly 
portals, it undoubtedly met there a host of pro- 



14 


Introduction. 


digal children whom he, by the grace of God, 
had brought back to their Father’s house. 

Father Bernard always left a lasting impression 
wherever he appeared. A powerful and faithful 
instrument in the hands of the Divine Redeemer 
of man, he was a most indefatigable soldier of 
the Church, under the peaceful banner of Saint 
Alphonsus. 

The memory of this extraordinary man has 
always affected me. After his death I com¬ 
menced to collect the interesting details of his 
life and of his apostolic labors. I can affirm with 
truth that the present biography, in absence of 
any other merit, has at least that of perfect 
accuracy. By giving this life to the devout pub¬ 
lic, I consider myself as doing something for the 
edification of the faithful, and for the glory of 
our holy mother the Church. 

Justice compels me to inform the reader that 
I have availed myself of a Netherland pamphlet 
.^(^of 35 pages 8vo, Korte Levensschets van den Ew. 
P. Bernard, by an anonymous writer, publish¬ 
ed some time ago by H. Bogaerts, Bois-le-Duc 
and Amsterdam. It is the work of a nephew 
of the deceased, and the author had at his 




Introduction. 


15 


disposal the correspondence of his venerable 
uncle.* 

Several Redemptorist fathers, whose humility 
prevents me from mentioning their names, have 
supplied me with authentic information ; others 
have had the kindness to revise my imperfect 
work and to supply my deficiencies. May they 
deign to receive the assurance of my respectful 
gratitude. 

In conclusion, I request the reader to bear in 
mind that these pages are not intended as a 
panegyric ; they contain but a feeble sketch of 
the labors which marked a too short but glorious 
career. It remains for the Congregation of the 
Most Holy Redeemer to perfect the portrait of 
its illustrious son. It above all others knows 
what he was on earth, and what he has done .to 
cultivate the field of’our Heavenly Father. 

* We hope it is not indiscreet to say that this excellent bio¬ 
graphical notice is due to the pen of Abb6 Lans, at present a 
professor in the petit s^minaire of Hageveld. May he one day 
favor us with a complete life ’ 





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Life of Father Bernard 


CHAPTER 1. 

BERNARD’S CHILDHOOD. 

T T APPY the man who has been reared under 
^ the eye of a pious and loving mother; 
under the strict discipline of a virtuous father. 
This united authority exercises over the child 
an irresistible influence which often decides his 
future career; and as the sun penetrates all 
nature by its rays and vivifying power, so do 
Christian parents infuse into the hearts of their 
children the celestial germs which will one day 
be developed by the grace of the Most High. 

Our future Redemptorist missionary enjoyed 
this inestimable happiness. 

Michael Hafkenscheid, descended from a re¬ 
spectable family, distinguished for its inviolable 
attachment to the faith in the heart of a Pro- 


17 



8 


Life of Father Bei'iiard. 


testant country, was born in the village of Ulft, 
in the province of Guelderland. 

While still young he went to Amsterdam to 
engage in commercial pursuits, and in l8oi he 



Catherine Aleide Weber, a native of 


that city, a pious Catholic lady of ancient line¬ 
age, who was in all respects worthy of him. The 
fortune of the newly-married couple was not 
•very considerable, but they soon experienced 
the truth of the promise of our Divine Master: 
“ Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his jus¬ 
tice, and all these things shall be added unto 
you.”* Providence abundantly rewarded their 
honesty in business, and blessed them with the 
goods of this world. 

They also became the happy parents of three 
sons and as many daughters. Full of holy zeal 
for their religious duties, they carefully watched 
over the education of their children, and formed 
them to the practice of virtue by their teachings 
and example. In their old age they had the 
happiness to see their children, not only corre* 
sponding to their desires, but even far surpassing 
their most ardent hopes. 


* Matt. vi. 33. 


Life of Father Bernard. 


19 


On the I2th of December, 1807, was born in 
Amsterdam their second son—he for whom God 
had destined a distinguished place in the family of 
St. Alphonsus. This child of grace was baptized 
in the parish church known as that of ‘‘ Faith, 
Hope, and Charity,” and received the name of 
Bernard Joseph.* 

Bernard Joseph grew to be an amiable child, 
remarkably bright and cheerful; but he always 

* The Catholic worship was secretly practised in Holland 
until the beginning of the present centur)'. The churches in 
comiiiercial cities were designated by names such as those 
which were usually given to warehouses and taverns. At 
Amsterdam the Catholic churches bore the titles of Pool, het 
Haantje, de Papegaai, het Duifje, de Poost-Hoorn, de Krijt- 
berg, de Zaaijer, etc., instead cf those of the Blessed Virgin, 
St. Joseph, St. Anne, St. Nicholas, etc. The first church, 
which bore the exterior appearance of a religious edifice, was 
that of Geloof, Hoop en Liefde (Faith, Hope, and Charity). 
The government employed every means in its power to pre¬ 
vent the building of this church, but Mr. Hafkenscheid over¬ 
came every obstacle. His son Anthony, a brother of Ber¬ 
nard, was the founder of the first religious community that was 
established in Amsterdam since the time of the so-called 
Reformation. Mr. Anthony Hafkenscheid is now president of 
the St. Vincent de Paul Society in that ciW. Pope Pius IX. 
has rewarded his devotedness to the church by creating him a 
Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great. 


20 


Life of Father Bernard, 


assumed an air of thoughtfulness whenever his 
mother commenced to give him instructions in 
_h^th or endeavored to form his young heart to 
piety. Without him his little comrades seemed 
not to enjoy themselves ; without him their games 
possessed neither animation nor attraction. But 
this natural gayety changed to recollection 
whenever he was permitted to accompany his 
parents to church or join them in the family 
devotions. He was then no longer recognized as 
the jovial Bernard. He edified and delighted all 
who witnessed his respect and recollection in the 
sacred edifice. 

It is unnecessary to speak of his submission to 
his parents; he bore them the most tender 
affection, and availed himself of every opportu¬ 
nity to prove his love. A knowledge of this 
filial love, which increased with years, may give 
us a faint idea of the painful sacrifice he was re¬ 
quired to make, at a later period, in leaving them 
for Italy, or when he retired to a convent in 
Vienna, or, finally, when he was called upon to 
bid farewell to Europe, and enter upon the work 
of the American mission. 

When a man by his superior greatness has 


Life of Father Bernard. 


21 


once attracted our attention, we feel interested in 
the most trifling details of his childhood. The 
favorite amusement of little Bernard was, as it is 
commonly termed, “ to play priest.” If it be 
true that this is, as has been frequently ob¬ 
served in pious families, a sign of a vocation 
to the ecclesiastical state, young Hafkenscheid 
may be cited as a proof of it. Scarcely a day 
passed in which he was not seen, in his youthful 
simplicity, representing the functions of the holy 
priesthood. ^When he celebrated M-ass or gave 
Benediction in his chapel, he required his 
brothers and sisters to be present, and would not 
permit them either to speak or laugh. The ser¬ 
vice was frequently preceded or followed by a 
sermon, as if the youthful cur^ had a presenti¬ 
ment of his vocation to a missionary life. On \ 
one occasion he preached on the holy name of 
Jesus; of this sermon his family preserved a 
precious remembrance. His relatives still recall 
the love for Jesus which shone forth in every 
word of the little preacher. Those who heard 
him were deeply affected, and his parents were 
moved even to tears. 

Bernard was gifted with a clear, sweet voice. 


VC 








U^' 0^ VVla^ 

Cov-^t, . - «/^ U.5. J 


I/L- i/v^ *_U^ 


22 of Father Bernard. 

which he loved to devote to the service of the 
church. Great was the joy he manifested when 
permitted to sing solos in the choir. When only 
ten years of age, he took lessons in vocal and in¬ 
strumental music, in which he made , rapid pro¬ 
gress. This accomplishment, which, in the be¬ 
ginning, was but a mere recreation for him, was 
afcerwards, during his priestly career, frequently 
devoted to singing the praises of the Most High, 
^ thus adding to the splendor of divine worship. 

His piety grew more solid as the time of his 
first communion approached. The counsels of 
his pious mother, the prayers which she offered, 
together with his own, joined to the instruction 
of the venerable cure. Van Der Lugt, served as 
the immediate preparation for this great act of 
his life. The child understood beyond his years 
the greatness of the grace he was about to re¬ 
ceive. One day, when he was thought to be 
engaged with his little companions in play, his 
mother, astonished at his remaining away from 
home much longer than usual, went in search of 
him ; but he was not to be found, and no one 
knew what had become of him. With the 
anxiety of a mother, she sought him every- 



Life of Father Bernard. 23 

where, until he was at length discovered in his 
little room. Bernard was kneeling before a cru¬ 
cifix, engaged in fervent prayer, with his arms 
extended in the form of a cross, preparing to 
approach the tribunal of penance. 

On the eve of the great day, the child, accord¬ 
ing to the custom of pious families, came to ask 
the blessing of his excellent parents, and to beg 
their pardon for aii}^ sorrow which he might have 
caused them. On the 14th of February, 1820, 
his soul was nourished for the first time with the 
Bread of Angels. This first communion, made 
with such good dispositions by so innocent a 
child, was the consecration of the destiny that 
awaited him. 


CHAPTER II. 

BERNARD’S EDUCATION AT HAGEVELD. 

OR a generous soul, and one truly devoted 



to God, the things of this world and its 
transitory joys have but little attraction. Ber¬ 
nard was not made for them; all his aspirations 
tended towards the holy ministry, and more 
than once he expressed his desire to be permit¬ 
ted to follow his inclinations. His parents were 
far from opposing his vocation; they had al¬ 
ready consulted the worthy cure of the parish to 
which they belonged. By his advice it was 
decided that the pupil should be sent to an in¬ 
stitution which laid just claim to the confidence 
of all good Catholics. On the 30th of Septem¬ 
ber, 1820, Bernard, then in his thirteenth year, 
left the paternal roof, his face bathed in tears, 
but with a heart overflowing with happiness, and 
entered the college, or petit s6minaire, of Hage- 
veld, situated at Velzen, not far from Harlem.* 

* The petit seminaire, which still retains the name of 
Ilageveld, is at present situated in the village of Voorhout, 
near Leyden, in the Diocese of Harlem. 


24 


Life of Father Bernard. 


25 


The Hageveld Institute, the result of a wise 
civil liberty, founded in 1817 by three dis¬ 
tinguished priests of Holland—the Baron of 
Wijckerslooth * and Messrs. Van Kiel and Van 
Bommel. The professors of Hageveld devoted 
their talents and energies to the forming of the 
army of young clerics which was placed under 
their charge. Unremittingly devoted to their 
labors, they never lost sight of the thought 
which had inspired them. The education of 
youth was the object of their watchings and of 
'their persevering efforts. Here it was that Re¬ 
ligion, the queen of souls, ruled all things by her 
efficacious influence, while piety diffused salu¬ 
tary rays of light and life into both mind and 
heart. ' 

Brilliant success could not fail to crown labors 
undertaken in so noble a cause and pursued with 
such disinterested zeal. This explains the at- 

* Corneille Louis, Baron of Wijckerslooth, afterwards 
Bishop of Curium in ^artibus, died November 10, 1851. The 
Revue Catholique of Louvain, t. ix. p. 534, gives a notice of 
this eminent prelate, who rendered immense service to the 
Catholics of the Low Countries and to their colonies in the 
Indies. 


26 Life of Father Bernard. 

tachment of the young pupils to this well- 
directed institution—an attachment which they 
ever preserved. It was particularly dear 1:0 those 
who attended it while under the direction of its 
first superior, M. Corneille Richard Antoine Van 
Bommeh* 

The director of the petit seminaire of Hage- 
veld soon perceived that he had received a 
student remarkable in every respect. Young 
Hafkenscheid, on his part, applied himself with 
unabated ardor to his studies, in order to be the 
better able to realize the expectations of his 
beloved parents and to mature the excellent 
talents with which God had gifted him. His 
first care was to increase in wisdom and in grace 
befoue God and men ; his next was to make pro¬ 
gress in science. Bernard joined great pleasant¬ 
ness of character to solid piety, Avhich possessed 
something very attractive, and gentlemanly de¬ 
portment to great simplicity of manners. The 

* It is well known that this eminent priest was raised, in 
1829, to the episcopal see of Liege, and in 1834 became one 
of the founders of the University of Louvain. He died a holy 
death at Liege, April 7, 1852, leaving to Belgium the remem¬ 
brance of his exalted virtues and great works. 


Life of Father Bernard. 27 

only fault discovered in him was an extreme 
vivacity; but it must be said that against this 
he combated all his life. 

Destined, like his fellow-student and competi¬ 
tor, John Theodore Beelon, to attain scientific 
celebrity, he raised himself above the ordinary 
level. Like him, he was always at the head of 
his class ; like him, he gained the esteem and 
affection of all. Without a show of humility or 
a desire to seek applause, he never understood 
how he could consider himself in any respect 
above his confreres; he also avoided the least 
manifestation of having surpassed them in any¬ 
thing whatever. 

The penetrating eye of M. Van Bommel soon 
discovered the qualities of Bernard Joseph Haf- 
kenschied ; he saw in him not only virtue, but 
brilliant talents, sound judgment, and an ener¬ 
getic character. On this account he always took 
the liveliest interest in him. Several years later, 
when he heard that his dear humanist and 
philosopher of Hageveld had enlisted in the 
army of St. Alphonsus, he was not in the 
least astonished. “ I always thought,” he 
said, that a mere village or a single city 


28 Life of Father Bernard, 

would be too small a theatre for a soul so 
great.” * 

It is a fact worthy of note that the diocese of 
Mgr. Van Bommel was the first to witness the 
salutary effects of Bernard’s zeal. 


CHAPTER III. 


BERNARD ENTERS THE ROMAN COLLEGE. 

T) ERNARD had completed his preparatory 
studies and the first course of philosophy 
at Hageveld, when the fatal decree of 1825 was 
published. King William I. suppressed the col¬ 
leges and Latin free-schools, replacing them by 
the “ Collegium Philosophicum,” designed for 
the education of young Catholics who were 
^destined for holy orders. 

No aspirant could be admitted into the episco¬ 
pal seminaries unless he had previously made his 
preparatory studies in this college, which became 
so sadly renowned. This was a violent infringe¬ 
ment on the rights of the church. All the 
Catholics of the kingdom raised their voices 
against measures so grievous and so unconstitu¬ 
tional. In vain did the Holy See'address earnest 
protestations to the‘royal court. The Batavian 
government disregarded them. The “ Collegium 
Philosophicum ” was opened the same year at 
Louvain, and all Catholic colleges were arbi- 


39 


Life of' Father Bernard. 


/ 


SO 

trarily suppressed. The Hageveld Institute 
yielded to the general proscription. Masters 
and pupils received orders to separate. M. 
Tets van Goudriaan, Governor of Northern Hol¬ 
land and the friend of the superior, M. Van 
Bommel, was, against his inclinations, the exe¬ 
cutor of the royal will.* 

Hafkenscheid and Beeleii were compelled to 
return to their homes ; they were determined not 
to enter the “ Collegium Philosophicum,” which 
was condemned by all true Catholics. They did 
not, however, interrupt their studies. Having a 
knowledge of the Greek and Latin, they wished 
also to acquire that of the Hebrew tongue, 
which could not fail to be useful to them. They 
took lessons of a Jew in Amsterdam. Having 
completed the course of elementary philosophy, 

* Professor Mathias Siegenbeck, in a public letter ad¬ 
dressed, in 1840, to M. Groen Van Prinsterer, dared to calum¬ 
niate the Catholic institutions which were arbitrarily closed 
in 1825. Mgr. Van Bommel, then Bishop of Liege, made 
him a dignified reply in a letter addressed to the Protestant 
publicist. Among the man}'- men distinguished in the 
higher orders of society who were educated at the petit s6mi- 
naire of Hageveld, he named Hafkenscheid, Beelen, Broere, 


etc. 


Life of Father Bernard. 31 

they devoted themselves to the study of theo¬ 
logy under the direction of Abb6 Bogaerts, one 
of their former professors at Hageveld. 

On the 18th of June, 1827, the Concordat was 
concluded between Pope Leo XII. and the gov¬ 
ernment of William I.; but the Calvinistic 
government found reasons to delay the execu¬ 
tion of the treaty, and did not allow the reopen¬ 
ing of the seminaries. In awaiting the dawn of 
happier days for the Catholic population, our 
young men resolved to follow the example 
of some Hollanders and Belgians who went to 
seek in a foreign land the sacred science which 
their own government had denied them. On the 
28th of September, 1828, they bade farewell to 
their respective families, and directed their steps 
towards the capital of Catholicity. 

In after years they delighted to relate how, by 
making short journeys, they visited the large 
cities which lay on their route; how, with pipe in 
mouth, staff in hand, and with joyful hearts, 
they travelled over the mountains of Switzerland, 
and contemplated with delight the grandeur of 
uncultivated nature. On Mont Cenis they cou¬ 
rageously mounted a summit, covered with snow 


32 


Life of Father Bernard, 


and ice, and. when they beheld the beautiful 
country of Italy, they exclaimed with enthusi¬ 
asm, Italiam ! Italiam ! ” Arriving in a dili¬ 
gence within three leagues of Rome, they 
stepped out of the conveyance, which travelled 
too slowly for their desires^, and performed the 
rest of the journey on foot. They entered the 
City of the Seven Hills November 20, and 
went in search of their companions, who had ar¬ 
rived in Rome before them. Their happiness 
was now at its height. ‘‘ Nothing, wrote Haf 
kenscheid to his beloved parents—“ nothing can 
be compared to the joy that we felt in breathing 
the fragrance of Rome, and this joy, I dare say, 
was holy. The thought that I have come here 
to taste, in the mother city, that which my own 
country has refused me, deeply penetrates me, 
and renders my happiness so pure that I be¬ 
lieve I can abandon myself to it without re¬ 
serve.” 

Rome, the asylum of the persecuted, inter¬ 
ested herself from the beginning in the welfare 
of the proscribed seminarians who had come 
from the Netherlands. Pope Leo XII. deigned 
to take them under his protection, and appointed 


Life of Father Berriard 


33 


a distinguished priest to give them a cordial re¬ 
ception. 

The day following their arrival Hafkenscheid 
and Beelen were received into the Gregorian 
University, better known as the Roman College. 
The ties of pure and sincere friendship which 
had united the two students of Amsterdam 
naturally became stronger. Like David and 
Jonathan, they were of one heart and one soul. ^ 
“ Beelen was never seen without Haflcenscheid, 
Hafkenscheid never without Beelen.” It was 
thus that Bernard wrote to his parents. United 
in recreation and in visiting the Roman monu¬ 
ments, they were not less so in their studies and 
devotions. These inseparable companions had 
the same end in view: they desired to become 
learned and exemplary priests in order that they 
might thereby become worthy laborers in the 
vineyard of our Heavenly Father. 

Beelen made the Holy Scriptures and the 
Oriental languages his favorite studies; his 
friend preferred scholastic theology. He ac¬ 
quired a thorough knowledge of Saint Thomas 
of Aquin, the prince of theologians. “ From 
morning till night,” he says in a letter to his 


34 


Life of Father Bernard. 


parents, “ the Sumnia 'lies open on my table. 
The Angelic Doctor is not easily understood, but 
daily intercourse with him has already given me 
an insight into his meaning, and I often enter¬ 
tain myself with Saint Thomas till midnight. 
You cannot imagine how agreeable is his conver¬ 
sation. Every word contains a treasure of deep 
thought. I never leave this ‘ Angel ’ without 
having learned from him something new and 
interesting.” Some hours of the holidays were 
generally devoted to reading the works of De La- 
mennais, whose glory was not yet tarnished by 
his revolt against the decisions of the Church. 
Hafkenscheid also took some relaxation in his 
scientific reflections, sometimes in Tasso’s “Jeru¬ 
salem Delivered,” sometimes in topographical 
researches, or in the history of the great city. 
“I am sure,” he says in a letter to his parents, 
“ that no more useful pastime can be found 
here; no society, not even that of the inhabi¬ 
tants of the city, is more agreeable. . . . My 
professors, my books, my confreres, natives or 
Hollanders, are the most agreeable and instruc¬ 
tive society that I could or should have. Patient 
and continual application to study is the only 


Life of Father Ber^iard. 


35 


means one has to advance and to see his 
efforts crowned with success. . . . Living 

in this manner, I hope to conduct myself 
well, and to form myself according to the spirit 
of the state which I hope one day to em¬ 
brace.” 

It is not astonishing that a piety so firm, a 
zeal so persevering, and a mode of life so well 
regulated and in all respects so exemplary, 
should have gained for Hafkenscheid and Bee- 
len the especial affection of their masters; 
and, whenever they mentioned the best students 
of the Roman College, the name of our young 
levite and that of his excellent friend always 
ranked first. 

These earnest labors, blessed by the Holy 
Spirit, were abundantly rewarded. At the close 
of the first scholastic year Haflcenscheid ob¬ 
tained the silver medal awarded as the first 
premium in dogmatic theology, while Beelen 
took the first prize in Sacred Scripture. Without 
being elated by their success, they were not the 
less happy. Above all, they rejoiced to be able 
to give to their beloved parents this testimony of 
filial gratitude for all the privations they'had un- 


36 Life of Father Bernard. 

dergone. All the students of Holland then at 
Rome rejoiced at the victory of their country¬ 
men, and at a private feast, where music, song, 
and the national pipe were not forgotten,’they 
gave full vent to the joy of their hearts. Divine 
Providence, which ordereth all things powerfully 
and sweetly, gave them an unexpected consola¬ 
tion. In March, 1829, they heard that their 
former director at Hageveld was to be precon- 
ized Bishop of Liege. Their joy was still 
greater when shortly afterwards it was an¬ 
nounced to them that the religious affairs of the 
Low Countries had taken a favorable turn. A 
royal decree of June 20, 1829, rendered optional 
the attendance at the “ Collegium Philosophi- 
cum” by the Catholic young men who intended 
to devote themselves .to study in the episcopal 
seminaries. By another decree, dated October 
2, the king declared that the bishops could 
devote themselves immediately to the organi¬ 
zation of their respective seminaries, and to 
admit into them the young men who had made 
their preliminary studies outside the kingdom. 
Thus satisfaction was given to the Catholic 
clergy of the Netherlands. We cannot refrain 


Life of Father Bernard. 


37 


from reprodiicing some passages of Bernard’s 
correspondence : 

Our esteemed director, whose memory is 
engraven on our hearts, who has already ren¬ 
dered valuable services to the church, will now 
render her services still more valuable ; his rare 
qualities, so long hidden within the walls of 
Hageveld, will now shine forth in all their bril¬ 
liancy, and he will receive from the entire Neth- 
erland church the exalted esteem which those 
who have known him intimately have always felt 
for him. . . . The reopening of the Institute 

of Hageveld, always so dear to our hearts; the 
return of the young students who had been dis¬ 
persed here and there, to their former home ; 
this the new source of blessings to the church of 
the Netherlands, are so many events which have 
excited , even in Rome, the most unexpected and 
the most sincere joy. Yes, from the bottom of 
our hearts we participate in the joy of the 
Catholics of our country. In these recent 
events they have received a new proof that 
patience and resignation always triumph over 
the enemies of the church, and that those who 
patiently support earthly trials will infallibly 
draw down upon themselves the benedictions of 


38 Life of Father Bernard. 

heaven. May a lasting feeling of gratitude 
confirm in all hearts this great grace which 
heaven has bestowed on our brethren of the 
Netherlands.” 

The renown of the merits and virtues of 
the two friends preceded them into their own 
country. In June, 1830, after the reopening of 
the seminaries, in accordance with the decrees 
of June and October, 1829, the Archpriest of 
Holland thought of recalling them. He wished 
to appoint Bernard professor of philosophy at 
Hageveld, and Theodore Beelen professor of 
theology in the Seminary of Warmond. Ready 
to obey their .superior if he should insist, they 
respectfully asked his permission to complete 
their course in Rome, and the Archpriest 
acquiesced without difficulty to this just de¬ 
mand. The future clearly manifested that the 
finger of God was here. The pulpit, and not 
the professor’s chair, was the most suitable place 
for the activity of Hafkenscheid. He already 
felt in the depths of his soul a secret desire of 
which we will hereafter speak. The events 
which took place in Belgium in September, 
1830, are too well known to be referred to in 
this biography. 


CHAPTER IV. 


BERNARD IS ORDAINED PRIEST, AND RECEIVES 
THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF THEOLOGY. 



N Saturday, in the Ember-week of Decem- 


ber, 1829, Bernard received minor orders, 
and on Holy Saturday, 1830, he was promoted 
to the order of sub-diaconate. “ Could I have 
believed,” he wrote on this occasion, “ that the 
choice of my state of life would have caused me 
so much interior happiness? Truly, it is too 
great. Why cannot I sufficiently thank hea¬ 
ven for granting me this signal favor?” 

At the close of the scholastic year, he received 
the degree of bachelor in theology, and ob¬ 
tained three medals, the first prizes in moral and 
dogmatic theology and in Hebrew. 

The desire to commence an active life and to 
labor for the salvation of souls grew daily 
stronger in Bernard’s soul. The young theo¬ 
logian was anxious to terminate his studies and 
to undergo his examination for his license and 
for the degree of doctor of theology. He be- 


' 39 


40 


Life of Father Bernard, 


came licentiate at the close of the third year 
(1831), and was made doctor shortly after his or¬ 
dination. He received the order of deacon on 
Holy Saturday, 1831. A letter written to his 
friend Broere, who had been appointed professor 
of philosophy at Hageveld,* testifies to the ex¬ 
alted idea he had formed of the dignity which 
awaited him : “ Another step,, my dear friend, 
and I shall be a priest ! I am continually occu¬ 
pied with this thought, and I hope to be suitably 
prepared for the great day. From this moment 
I claim a share in your prayers, especially in 
your mementos during the holy sacrifice of the 
Mass. When I reflect on what I have been and 
on what I am to-day, I sincerely confess that I 
tremble at the mere thought of my elevation to 
a dignity of which I see the responsibility. But 
the will of God, if I am not mistaken, has called 
me to this sublime state, and it must be accom¬ 
plished. I endeavor, as far as is in my power, to 

* M. Corneille Broere, Canon of Harlem and domestic 
prelate of His Holiness, was born in Amsterdam in 1803, and 
died in the Seminary of Warmond, December, i860. He waiS' 
a philosopher, theologian, a talented painter, and a poet of 
genius. 


Life of Father Bernard, 


41 


purify my intentioiTs and to renew my spirit, 
which should be that of a good and true priest. 
Nine days before Lent I made for this purpose 
the spiritual exercises under the direction of the 
fathers of the Society of Jesus. May God 
crown my feeble efforts with the best success! 
I have great confidence in the prayers of my 
family and in those of my friends and acquaint¬ 
ances ; for the rest, I place all my interests in the 
hands of God and in those of his holy Mother. 
It is now two years and a half since I left Hol¬ 
land, and, God be praised, I feel the most com¬ 
plete indifference as to my destination! I do not 
trouble myself to know in what place or in 
what position I shall one day labor. My family 
awaits my return at the end of the fourth year; 
if it is to be so, I will say ‘ fiat !’ Should it be 
otherwise, I shall not be the less contented. It 
always. makes me happy to learn that one or 
the other of my friends has received an appoint¬ 
ment. I hope one day to follow them, and, 
although I burn with the desire to be useful to 
my neighbor, I cannot neglect the opportunities 
which I now have^to enrich my mind and heart.” 

And, in fact, if Mr. Hafkenscheid’s mind was 


42 


Life of Father Bernard. 


developed by private study, his heart became 
perfectly sacerdotal under the spiritual guidance 
of the Jesuit Fathers of the Roman College. 
H is confreres were unanimous in their esteem of 
him on account of his virtues. He had learned 
from his parents to love the poor of Jesus Christ, 
and attributed to his little alms the greatest 
graces which God bestowed upon him. During 
Lent his collation in the evening consisted of a 
piece of dry bread with some salt. In his walks 
he never failed to conduct his friends to some 
sanctuary, to prostrate themselves before the 
Blessed Sacrament or to assist at Benediction. 
The edifying example which the Holy City gave, 
the splendor of its religious solemnities, its re¬ 
miniscences of the early ages of Christianity, and 
even the revolutionary storm which broke out 
in the Pontifical States at the accession of 
Gregory XVI., revived in his soul that firm con¬ 
fidence in the triumph of the Church, that holy 
indignation against the persecutors of the spouse 
of Christ, that ardent thirst for souls, that inde¬ 
fatigable zeal for the conversion of sinners, and 
that courage in all trials, which were so many 
characteristic traits of his apostolic career. 


Life of Father Bernard, 


43 


Even in Rome his oratorical talents began to 
display themselves. He assiduously studied the 
great orators, who were heard at the religiouSi 
services presented by the Pope at the time of the 
atompted insurrection. He knew how to ap¬ 
preciate them according to their just value—a 
proof of which is the following passage, taken 
from one of his letters: “ Here, in sermons, are 
not heard the soft murmurs of a limpid stream, 
fragrant flowers are not gathered; but the truths 
of the Gospel are. clothed in chaste and appropri¬ 
ate language, and inculcated with soul-stirring 
eloquence. Happy, thrice happy Netherlands, if 
orators such as these announced the Gospel to 
thee !” 

Little did he then think that he would one 
day hold the first rank among orators of this 
class. On the 17th of March, the feast of Saint 
Patrick, the patron of the country which at a 
later period he went to evangelize, Bernard 
Joseph Hafkenscheid was raised to the sacred 
dignity of the priesthood. On the 19th of 
March, the feast of Saint Joseph, he had the hap¬ 
piness to offer to God, for the first time, the holy 
sacrifice of the Mass. He spent this day in re- 


44 


Life of Father Ber7iard. 


treat and continual prayer. The following 
month he admirably sustained his theses for the- 
doctorate. His professors conferred on him the 
degree of doctor, accompanied by the following 
testimony: * 

“ I, the undersigned, declare that the Rev. Mr. 
Bernard Joseph Hafkenscheid, son of Michael, 
a native of Amsterdam, has pursued for about 
four years, beginning with the 8th of November, 
1828, the study of dogmatic theology in the 
Roman College of the Society of Jesus. He de¬ 
voted himself to the studies of moral theology. 
Holy Scripture, and of ecclesiastical history for 
two years, and for one year to the study of the 
Hebrew language. During this time he gave in¬ 
creasing proofs of such diligent application, and 
made such remarkable progress, that but few 
students could be compared to him. As regards 
piety, religion, and modesty, he was always a 
model, and merited the highest encomiums. He 
took the first prize at the solemn distribution of 
premiums at the close of the scholastic year. In 
1830 he received the degree of bachelor ; in 1831 
he became licentiate; and finally, in April, 1832, 
* See Appendix A. 


Life of Father Bernard. 


45 


he was, by unanimous suffrages, raised to the de¬ 
gree of doctor of divinity. 

Given at the Roman College of the Society of 
Jesus, April 23, 1832. 

“J. B. D^SSI, 

Rector of the Roman College.” 


CHAPTER V. 


RELIGIOUS VOCATION—HE ENTERS THE CON¬ 
GREGATION OF THE MOST HOLY REDEEMER. 

' I '^HIS good news had already reached Am- 
sterdam. Father Bernard’s parents longed 
for the moment when they should embrace their 
beloved son, avIio had been absent for four long 
years; and they promised themselves the happi¬ 
ness to see him engaged in the exercise of 
parochial duties. But God had other designs 
with • his faithful servant. After mature delibe¬ 
ration and ardent prayer, and having asked the 
advice of his spiritual director, Bernard Joseph 
resolved to unite the perfection of the religious 
life to the dignity of the priesthood by entering 
the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. 
I have consulted on this subject a religious who 
enjoyed his friendship and for a long time shared 
his labors. I here insert a copy of the letter 
which he addressed to me: 

‘‘ Our future confrere saw brilliant prospects 

46 


Life of Father Beryiard. 


47 


open before him, but he sacrificed all to secure 
his salvation. A pulpit in Holland, as well as a 
position in Rome, had been offered to him; but 
he felt himself called to the Congregation of the 
Most Holy Redeemer. He could not explain 
the interior attraction which he felt for Saint 
Alphonsus rather than for Saint Ignatius. He 
loved the Society of Jesus, which labors for the 
greater glory of God ; he also loved scientific 
pursuits. In order to enter our dear Congre¬ 
gation, he must devote himself entirely to the 
apostolate; he must be entirely detached from 
his country and the companions of his studies; 
he must leave his parents, whom he loved with 
all his heart, 

“ He could not, however, resist the voice of 
God, which left him no repose. It was while 
kneeling in the Church of Saint Andrea della 
Valle, and shedding an abundance of tears, that 
he took the final resolution to knock for admis¬ 
sion at the convent-door of the Redemptorist 
Fathers. 

“ At that time our fathers did not possess, in 
the Eternal City, their large establishment on 
the Esquiline Hill known as the Villa Caserta, 


48 


Life of Father Bernard. 


which, under Pius IX., became the residence of 
the superior-general. They had at Rome only 
a small convent attached to the Church of Santa 
Maria in Monterone.' Father Mantone resided 
there, quite unknown to the city, with three 
companions, and without being engaged in the 
work of the holy missions. He was charged 
with the duties of procurator-general. 

“ When Mr. Hafkenscheid manifested the 
desire to be admitted as a novice. Father 
Mantone received him with an air of indiffe¬ 
rence, giving him but little hope of success. 
He told him to reflect at leisure, and, in any 
case, not to form any resolution before he had 
taken his degree of doctor of divinity; ‘ for,’ 
he added, ‘you will not be permitted in our 
Congregation to receive university degrees.’ 

“ Having received the degree of doctor, Mr. 
Hafkenscheid renewed his request. This time 
he received a more definite reply. But God sent 
him another trial. 

“ ‘ Since you are a native of Holland,’ said 
Father Mantone to him,‘you can easily leai'n 
the German language. You would do better to 
apply to the Redemptorists in Vienna ; your 


Life of Father Bernard. 


49 


apostolic life will be more useful there. We are 
expecting two fathers soon to arrive from be¬ 
yond the Alps; you will have an opportunity 
of speaking to them, and to make arrangements, 
if possible, Avith regard to what step you shall 
take.’ 

“ Mr. Hafkenscheid did not suffer himself to 
be discouraged. 

“ In a few days Rev. Father Czech, Rector of 
the house at Fribourg, in Switzerland, arrived 
in Rome, in company with Rev. Father Fred¬ 
eric de Held, of the community in Vienna. 
They repaired together to the chapter which 
was to be held at Nocera for the election of a 
new superior-general, who was to replace Rev. 
Father Celestine Maria Code, who had been 
appointed confessor to the King of Naples, 
and was raised to the archiepiscopal dig- 
nity. 

“ Our friend had an interview \vith Father 
Czech. The latter, perceiving that the young 
priest had a true vocation, and would be of 
service in the northern countries, promised to 
plead his cause with the Most Rev. Father 
Passerat, vicar-general of the cisalpine pro- 


50 Life of Father Bernard. 

vinces of our Congregation.* In the meantime, 
the postulant was to return to his family to 
await a reply. 

“Bernard Joseph immediately communicated 
to his parents the desire with which heaven had 
inspired him, doubting not that they would be 
happy to learn of his vocation. The news 
deeply afflicted his father; but this good man 
knew too well his duties as a Christian to offer 
any resistance to such a resolution. ‘ He would 
willingly submit,’ he replied, ‘ to the will of 
God, provided it would be clearly mani¬ 
fested.’ ” 

Bernard, full of his project, left Rome, May 
7, 1832, to return to his native country. Ar¬ 
riving at Liege, his first care was to ask the 
episcopal benediction of his former director. 
Mgr. Van Bommel received him with open arms, 
and, knowing the merit of his dear student of 
Hageveld, confidentially spoke to him of a theo- 

* Father Passerat succeeded, in 1820, the Venerable Father 
Clement Maria Hoftbauer, who had introduced the Congrega¬ 
tion into Austria, and had entered the Congregation of the 
Most Holy Redeemer, in Rome, during the lifetime of Saint 
Alphonsus. See Appendix E. 


Life of Father Bernard. 51 

logical professorship in the Catholic university 
which the Belgian episcopacy intended to found 
at Mechlin. The proposal was tempting; but 
Bernard’s vocation was already decided. On 
hearing that Mr. Hafkenscheid wished to become 
a member of the family of St. Alphonsus de 
Liguori, the bis hop made the further discovery 
that the conversion of sinners by means of mis¬ 
sions was the" special end which the Congrega¬ 
tion of the Most Holy Redeemer had in view. 
This was, for the zealous prelate, a discovery 
that might be termed providential. 

“Go, my son,” he said to him; “but you 
must absolutely return, for I wish to introduce 
this Congregation into my diocese.” 

It is well known that Mgr. Van Bommel 
generously assisted the Redemptorists to estab¬ 
lish themselves in Belgium, and that he showed 
them the affection of a father. The particular 
esteem that he bore thern, and the powerful 
protection with which he favored them at Liege, 
Saint Trond, and Wittem, may be attributed to 
the influence of Father Bernard. 

In July, Bernard found himself in the bosom 
of his family and relatives, whose joy and gra_ 


52 Life of Father Bernard. 

titude to God knew no bounds. He celebrated 
solemn High Mass in the humble church in 
which he had received the grace of regeneration 
and made his first communion. 

Professor Corneille Broere sang, in Dutch 
verse, the happiness of his friend and of his pious 
family: “ The sun, in traversing its orbit for the 
fourth time, has restored the friend whom the 
voice of heaven had called from his country. He 
left his family in tears, and, behold, he returns a 
priest of the Most High, educated in the Eternal 
City ! O ye who are prostrate with me before 
this holy altar, witnesses to-day of the Euchar¬ 
istic sacrifice which he offers, pray that the grace 
of the Most High may ever enlighten his path 
and conduct him to heaven! ” This prayer of 
friendship was heard. 

It was at Amsterdam that the young priest 
received the so-much-desired letter which the 
rector of the house at Fribourg had promised 
him in Rome. It reads as follows: 

“ Sir : Rev. Father Czech, the rector of the 
house of our Congregation of the Most Holy Re¬ 
deemer at Fribourg, has informed me of your 
desire to consecrate yourself to God in our holy 


Life of Father Bernard. 


53 


Congregation. According to the information 
which he has given me of y our reveren ce. I 
judge, as far as human infirmity is capable, that 
your desire is inspired by the Holy Ghost, and 
that you have a true vocation. It is, then, my 
duty to give you the means to follow it. Thus, 
sir, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I re¬ 
ceive you as a candidate, and you may repair to 
Vienna, in Austria, to make your novitiate. You 
know the spirit of our Congregation. Neverthe¬ 
less, I will repeat to you that obedience is, as in all 
religious orders, the principal as well as the most 
difficult point. Perfect indifference is required 
with regard to all kinds of employment in the 
holy ministry, and also concerning all opinions 
that do not pertain to faith.* Recommend to 
our Lord the step that you are about to take. 
Commending you to our Lord Jesus Christ and 
to his blessed Mother, in the hope of embracing 
you soon, I have the honor to be, sir, your very 
devoted servant, 

“Joseph Passerat, 

“ Vicar-General C.SS.R.” 


* See Appendix B for an explanation of this passage. 



54 


Life of Father Bernard. 


The joy of the postulant on receiving’ this 
letter of admission may be imagined. He pre¬ 
served it until death as one of the most precious 
remembrances of his life. It recalled not only 
an extraordinary grace which he had received 
from God, but also the extraordinary virtues of 
him who had written it. After two months’ 
sojourn beneath the paternal roof the day of 
separation arrived. It was for him a bitter trial 
to leave those whom he so fondly loved, but he 
had studied these words of Jesus Christ: “He 
.who loves father or mother more than me is not 
worthy of me.” His parents were no longer 
anxious about his future ; they only desired that, 
previous to his departure, he would give them 
the first-fruits of his apostolate in the church 
at Ulft, which was his father’s native village. 
Bernard wrote and carefully committed to 
memory his- first sermon. On the appointed 
day he ascended the pulpit and preached 
on the advantages of adversity. He proved 
that adversity was, in the sight of God, a 
salutary trial and a sign of predestination. The 
merit of adversity should be a consolation 
for the pious parents who were about to be 


Life of Father Bernard. 


55 


separated from their son, the object of their 
affection. 

Our Roman doctor arrived at Vienna during 
the last days of October, 1832. Most Rev. Father 
Passerat sent him to the convent at Weinhaus, 
one of the suburbs of the Austrian capital. It 
was there that Bernard was clothed in the livery 
of St. Alphonsus, December 8, the feast of the 
Immaculate Conception, and commenced his ap¬ 
prenticeship of the interior life in prayer and 
meditation. 

Father Bernard had the habit of writing in 
his Manual the resolutions which he made during 
his retreats. He wrote as follows on his recep¬ 
tion of the habit: “ Like a good Redemptorist, 
I must frequently recall to mind this touching 
solemnity. In blessing the habit which I wear 
the priest said, ‘ Bless, O Lord Jesus Christ! this 
livery of thy Congregation, that with it thy 
servant, our brother, may be clad with thee, who 
art the most beautiful model of all perfection.’ 
When the priest placed the habit on my 
shoulders, he said to me, ‘ Invest thyself, my son, 
with our Lord Jesus Christ, and always bear in 
thy body the mortifications of Jesus.’ I then 


56 Life of Father Bernard. 

said that I was resolved to give myself entirely 
to God, and to strive to imitate with all my 
strength the most holy life of my Divine Re¬ 
deemer. I must also recall the words addressed 
to me when I received the crucifix: ‘ Receive, 
my son, the image of thy Divine Master and 
crucified Redeemer, who has suffered for thee, 
and has given himself for thee ; place it as a seal 
upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm. 
Amen.’ ” 

The novice of Weinhaus did not fail during 
the first months of his novitiate to address to 
his parents frequent expressions of his filial 
attachment, and to assure them of the ineffable 
delights which he enjoyed. “ Never,” said he, 
could I have imagined that my sacrifice, which 
was not very great, would have met with so rich 
a reward. Assured of my vocation to the reli¬ 
gious state, I experience the most holy joy of 
heart. Ah ! pray with me, and ask my friends 
to pray, that I may correspond to all these 
graces; that I may ever preserve them; and that 
I may become a missionary according to the 
heart of God.” In another letter we find this 
touching exclamation: “ Blessed Weinhaus, I 


/ 


Life of Father Bernard. 


57 


could never have thought that thou didst con¬ 
tain so many treasures ! The four years that I 
passed in Rome are less dear to my soul than 
the four months spent within thy solitary 
walls.” 

We would never -finish did we attempt to 
enumerate all the expressions of happiness with 
which Bernard’s letters abound. This feeling 
of happiness becomes greater when he speaks 
of the love of Jesus and Mary ; when he consoles 
his friends who have met with a loss, or when 
afflicted with sickness, by describing to them the 
sufferings of the Saviour of man and the merits 
attached to afflictions. When he manifests his 
unlimited confidence in prayer—above all, in the 
holy rosary—he then becomes eloquent without 
^wishing it, and the ardor of his words betray 
the emotions of his soul. 

Fathers Madlener and Doll, trained in the 
school of Saint Alphonsus by the Venerable 
Clement Maria Hoffbauer, were successively 
his masters in the spiritual life. They testified 
that during the course of his novitiate he gave 
his confreres an example of every virtue, particu¬ 
larly of obedience and regularity, of humility 


58 


Life of Father Bernard. 


and the spirit of mortification. He loved to re¬ 
peat these words of Saint Alphonsus : “ He is an 
unv/orthy son of our Congregation to whom the 
least rule is not of the highest importance.” He 
was, in a certain sense, covetous of humiliations. 
It sometimes happened that the mast-er of 
novices, in order to try him, asked him questions 
in the catechism, to which Father Hafkenscheid 
replied with the modesty and simplicity of a 
child—he who, after sustaining the most bril¬ 
liant theses, had received the degree of doctor 
of theology! 

The excellent Father Hugues, who was his 
companion in the novitiate, relates the follow¬ 
ing traits of his character: 

“ Fathers Madlener and Doll have frequently 
spoken to me with intense admiration of 
Father Bernard’s virtues, and particularly of 
his humility and self-abnegation. As to my¬ 
self, who had been but recently converted to the 
Catholic faith, and had not as yet received any 
theological instruction, I could not sufficiently 
admire his goodness and his charity towards me. 
I may also add that he was for all of us an ad¬ 
mirable model of religious perfection. Among 


y 






Life of Father Bernard. 59 

the novices he was the only priest; the others 
were nearly all young Austrians, trained in the 
corrupt gymnasiums of the empire, and imbued 
with maxims that scarcely accorded with Roman 
orthodoxy; hence but very few of them were ad¬ 
mitted to profession. We may easily under¬ 
stand how much Father Bernard, who had com¬ 
pleted his studies at the Roman College, suffered 
in the depths of his soul in hearing his confreres 
express opinions which, to say the least, were 
very strange; but he always remained calm, 
always full of sweetness and charity. Although 
he wrote German correctly, he frequently com¬ 
mitted faults in speaking it, which caused much 
mirth to our young Germans; yet he com¬ 
ported himself towards them as though he had 
remarked 'nothing whatever, and lost neither his 
self-possession nor .forbearance.” 

Since Father Bernard had already been raised 
to the priesthood before entering the Congrega¬ 
tion of the Most Holy Redeemer, and gave every 
sign of a true vocation, his time of probation was 
shortened. He took his religious vows on 
the 17th of October, 1833, at the hands of the' 


6 o 


Life of FatJLC 7 ‘ Bernard. 


Most Rev. Father Passerat. He requested his 
superior, as a favor, to be allowed to remain for 
some time in the novitiate, that he might acquire 
more solid virtue and the spirit of the institute. 
The same year he left Weinhaus for Saint Trond, 
in company with Father Hugues, who was then 
neither a priest nor a professed m.ember of the 
Congregation, to whom he nevertheless humbly 
submitted. 

Father Bernard had now attained the age of 
twenty-six years. He was the first member of 
the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer 
who was a native of Holland. We will soon see 
him at .work. 

It gives me great pleasure to state here that 
his former fellow^student and intimate friend. 
Doctor John Theodore Beelen, was appointed by 
Mgr. Van Bommel to teach theology in the Epis¬ 
copal Seminary of Liege (1833). 

Episcopacy of Belgium confided to him the pro¬ 
fessorship of Holy Scripture and of the Oriental 
languages in the Catholic University of Louvain. 
It belongs not to me to speak of the services 
which this eminent man has rendered to science 


Life of Father Bernard 


6i 


and to the Church during his long professional 
career. I may be permitted to express here my 
gratitude for the affection wijh which he has 
honored me since I had the happiness of attend¬ 
ing his lectures. 


CHAPTER VI. 


FATHER BERNARD’S PROFESSORSHIP AT SAINT 
TROND — HIS APOSTOLIC CAREER IN BEL¬ 
GIUM. 

'^T^HE first Redemptorists who came to 
Belgium were sent from Switzerland, 
and some, perhaps, from Austria, by the Most 
Rev. Father Passerat, the year after the Bel¬ 
gian Revolution. Having dwelt for a short 
time in a house known as the Solitude, situ¬ 
ated at Rumillies, near Tournay, they took 
up their residence in 1833, in the interior of the 
city, during the episcopacy of Mgr. Delplancq.'^ 
At this period Mgr. Van Bommel entered into 
negotiations with the Very Rev. Father Pas¬ 
serat, to obtain a colony of Redemptorist mis¬ 
sionaries for his extensive diocese. 

Fathers de Held and Pilat established a com- 

*The Solitude was a country-house belonging to the Semh 
nary of Tournay. The noble families Robians and Casier 

gave the fathers a mansion in Tournay. 

62 



Life of Father Bernard. 


63 


munity of the Congregation at Liege in the 
month of March, 1833, and another at Saint- 
Trond in the following May. In January, 
1836, the Redemptorists took possession of the 
house of Wittem, near Galoppe, in that part of 
Limburg which waa annexed to Holland in 1842 * 
In 1841 they opened, under the auspices of Car¬ 
dinal Sterckx, Archbishop of Mechlin, a house 
adjoining the little church of Saint Mary Mag¬ 
dalen at Brussels. 

The Convent of Saint Trond served as a 
house of studies from 1833 until they obtained 
possession of the convent at Wittenj. 

The Redemptorists commenced their aposto- 
late in Belgium by a simple noverja, beginiling 
with the first of November, 1833. In December 
of the same year they commenced a course of 
missions in the respective parishes of Gulpen 
and Wittem. 

In the course of the following year regular 
missions were given by Father de Held to the 
inhabitants of Fauquemont, Montzen, Heerlen 
Thimister, Verviers, etc.f Thus the diocese of 

*See Appendix C. 

f Journal Hist, et Litteraire, de M. Kersten, vol. i. p. 328. 


64 


Life of Father Bernard. 


Mgr. Van Bommel received the first-fruits of 
the ministry of the children of Saint Alphonsus. 

Father Bernard was appointed to teach theo¬ 
logy to the students of the Congregation at 
Saint Trond. The following confidential lines 
prove that he had to overcome a natural repug¬ 
nance in entering upon the career of a professor; 
“ God does all things for our good ; it remains 
for us to accomplish his holy will. Hence I have 
no other desire. I seek no other consolation or 
happiness than to fulfil the holy will of God. 
For myself and for others I wish but a filial sub¬ 
mission to what God wills. By acting in this 
manner we will accomplish the greatest work 
that man can possibly perform in this world. 
From* the moment we begin to realize in our¬ 
selves the divine will we commence to lead here 
below the life of the angels and of the blessed, 
who find all their happiness in heaven in the ac¬ 
complishment of the divine will, in adoring God, 
and in praising him for ever.” 

On another occasion he wrote to his brother 
the following words: “‘Thy will be done on 
earth as it is in heaven ’—this is our daily 
prayer; it is also the daily thought of our 


Life of Father Bernard. 


65 


hearts. Our Heavenly Father alone knows 
what is beneficial for us. Let us hide our¬ 
selves with confidence in the bosom of his 
Divine Providence.” And again : “ I live hap¬ 
pily, provided the will of God be accomplished 
in me. I beg you to ask our dear Lord and 
his glorious and holy Mother to grant me this 
signal favor.’’ 

Father Bernard was not long engaged in the 
duties of professor of theology. At the end 
of one year he entered the list, and, to use 
his own expression, “ obtained a rank in the 
army.” The solitude of Saint Trond was “ the 
arsenal where he prepared his cannon and 
shot.” * 

He was permitted to use his first weapons 
in a slight skirmish which took place in the 
parish of Thimister, four leagues from Liege. 

The mission of Thimister, the first which 
had been given in the Walloon section of the 
Diocese of Liege, was opened August 29, 1834, 
with the co-operation of the vicar-general of 

* Father Bernard resided at the convent in Li^ge from 
1835 to 1842. 


66 


Life of Father Bernard. 


the institute, the Most Rev. Father Passerat. 
According to custom, it lasted ten days. Father 
Bernard and his confreres labored with inde¬ 
fatigable zeal, and by their united efforts brought 
forth fruits of salvation. The number of those 
who sought to be reconciled to God during the 
course of this mission was so great that it was 
necessary to ask for a reinforcement of confes¬ 
sors. Twelve fathers were occupied in the con¬ 
fessional from an early hour in the morning till 
late at night.* This skirmish was the beginning 
of that continued war against sin and impiety 
in which Father Bernard displayed his ’natural 
energy and his superhuman strength for over 
thirty years. His life was spent in fighting the 
battles of the Lord. It was not an uncommon 
thing for him, particularly in the first years ot his 
missionary labors, to meet with violent opposi¬ 
tion. In one place the authorities interfered, 
under pretext of the law, but in contempt of all 
justice, to prevent the mission ; at another the 
evil-minded instigated the people against the 
hypocritical monks, the disturbers of the pub¬ 
lic peace from a foreign country ” ; they spoke 

* youmal de A1 Kersten^ vol. i. p. 361, 


Life of Father Bernard. 


67 


of troubles and seditions; the corrupt press 
disseminated atrocious calumnies; the liberal¬ 
ism of the streets made use of irony and sar¬ 
casm. In a word, hell left nothing untried to 
accomplish its work; but it was on such occa¬ 
sions that Father Bernard seemed to redouble 
his efforts. Braving intimidations, raillery, and 
obstacles of all kinds, he engaged in action, and 
came off victorious, bearing away the spoils of 
those who were most obstinately infuriated 
against him. This happened in the great 
battle of Verviers, of which we will now 
speak.* 

The work of the mission of Verviers was 
commenced October 20, 1834, in the midst of 
unforeseen difficulties. I must, however, re¬ 
mark, to the honor of the inhabitants, that 
these disturbances afflicted all good people. 
Calumny unrelentingly attacked the mission¬ 
aries, even when they were triumphant. 
Strangers to the passions which agitated their 
enemies, they returned neither complaints nor 
criminations, and thus proved that the mission 


* fournalde M. Kersten, vol. i. p. 419. 


68 


Life of Father Bernard, 


was the work of God, of peace and reconcilia¬ 
tion. All the sinister attempts of their adver¬ 
saries had no other result than to constrain 
them to render homage to a religion the so¬ 
lemn exercises of which attracted the people, 
and gave tears of repentance and peace of soul 
to the immense crowd that attended them. 
As a proof of this it will suffice to enumerate 
the principal exercises of the mission, and the 
fruits of grace produced in those who assisted 
without hostile intentions. 

From the beginning of the mission the faith 
of the inhabitants of Verviers was manifested by 
the sacrifices which they made. Daily, at half¬ 
past five o’clock in the morning, the two paro¬ 
chial churches in the city were thronged with 
the faithful, whom the voice of grace called at 
that early hour to hear the word of salva¬ 
tion. The attendance at the instructions was 
not less numerous than at the sermon during 
High Mass. But it was, above all, the sermon 
in the evening, preached by Father Bernard, 
that showed the marvellous effects produced 
in sincere hearts by the grace of the Most 
High. 


Life of Father Bernard. 


69 


A person who attended this mission has 
preserved the following account of the subjects 
of the sermons and meditations: i. The Invi¬ 
tation ; 2. Mortal Sin ; 3. Salvation ; 4. The 
Small Number of the Elect; 5. Mercy of God ; 
6. Human Respect; 7. Death; 8. Death of the 
Sinner; 9. Death of the Just; 10. The Particu¬ 
lar Judgment; ii. Hell; 12. Abuse of Grace; 
13. Blasphemy; 14. Confession; 15. The Happi¬ 
ness of a Virtuous Soul; 16. Proximate Occa¬ 
sion of Sin; 17. Prayer; 18. Devotion to the 
Blessed Virgin ; 19. The Blessed Sacrament; 

20. Unworthy Communion, followed by the act 
of reparation; 21. The General Judgment; 
22. Heaven; 23. Education of Children ; 24. 
Perseverance; 25. Salutary Effects of the 
Cross. 

On the seventh day the fathers commenced 
to hear confessions. The concourse of people 
that surrounded the confessional was very great; 
there were seen persons of all ranks, ages, and 
conditions in life. The operations of grace and 
the acts of sincere repentance, which were the 
consolations of those who took part in this 
laborious ministry, will be revealed by our 


70 


Life of Father Bernard, 


Lord on the last day for the glory of His 
divine mercies. 

The mission of Verviers was terminated, as is 
customary, by the erection of the cross—a 
touching ceremony, Avhich hell had in vain at¬ 
tempted to prevent. Never was there seen a 
larger procession in the city, or greater recol¬ 
lection in a crowd of more than twelve thou¬ 
sand persons. Sighs of contrition and repeated 
cries of “ Long live the cross! ” arose from this 
vast concourse of people at the sight of the 
sign of salvation. The recollected attitude of 
the people was another refutation of the calum¬ 
nies uttered by the anti-Christian party that spoke 
only of the disturbance of the public peace. 

Father Bernard, in one of his letters, alludes 
to the calumnies propagated by the press 
against the missionaries. 

“ I can assure you,” he says, “ we have had, 
thanks be to God, our share of sufferings. But 
the humble period of our Congregation has 
passed; henceforth we shall be no longer un¬ 
known. Verviers has raised us to an eminent 
position. We will hold on, and, with God’s 
grace, will courageously pursue our course.” 


Life of Father Beryiard, 71 

I cannot omit relating a circumstance which 
reflects the religious soul of our missionary hero. 

Father Bernard, having resided only in Hol¬ 
land, Vienna, and Rome, at this time spoke 
French but imperfectly. Th? malicious jour¬ 
nals of Verviers did not fail to expose him 
to ridicule, and to exaggerate the faults 
of language that escaped him.* Being ap¬ 
pointed by Rev. Father Passerat to perform 
the acts of Reparation of Honor to the 
Blessed Sacrament, and of Consecration to the 
Blessed Virgin, Father Bernard threw himself 
on his knees, and begged him to take pity on 
his incapacity, and to release him from a duty 
which might be productive of no good. The 
venerable superior made him this severe reply: 

“ My son, your self-love causes you to speak 
thus.” 


* These journalists were even lees sparing in their cri¬ 
ticisms on Father Ludwig, who was an Alsatian. “ The 
fastidious ones of the earth,” says Bossuet {Panegyrique de 
Saint Paul) “ cannot understand how those who are ignorant 
of the art of speaking well can, with an unpolished form of 
speech and an accent which betrays the foreigner, succeed in 
calling the multitude to the practice of virtue.” 


72 Life of Father Bernard. 

Father Bernard, without any further remark, 
ascended the pulpit ; and the tears of the im¬ 
mense concourse were the recompense of his 
humility. 

We will now say a few words on the mission 
which was given during the months of March 
and April, 1835, in the parish of Louvegne, situ¬ 
ated between Verviers and Liege. 

Father Ludwig was superior of the mission, 
but Father Bernard assisted him with his usual 
apostolic zeal, and also by his musical talents. 
At the solemn planting of the cross he ascended 
a platform that had been erected in the church¬ 
yard, and spoke for an hour and a half, moving 
many to tears of love and contrition. At the 
first communion of the children that took place 
during the course of the mission, his melodious 
voice was heard singing hymns in French, as he 
accompanied himself on the organ. 

“We will courageously pursue our course.” 
Father Bernard kept his word. From the time 
of the memorable mission at Verviers until his 
first departure for America scarcely a month 


Journal de Af. Kersten. vol. ii, p. 99. 


Life of Father Bernard. 


73 


passed in which he was not engaged in the 
work of the missions. Looking over the account 
of his apostolic labors, we find that his missions, 
his retreats to seminarians and to religious com¬ 
munities, his Lenten sermons, his instructions, 
etc., followed so closely on one another that 
the interval between these exercises did not 
exceed the time necessary to go from one place 
to the other.. If in the missions he succeeded 
to the extreme of his desires, it Avas generally 
at the cost of great sacrifices. A priest, and, 
above all, a missionary, who has zeal for the 
conquest of souls, must expect to meet enemies 
an., to see the passions excited against him. 
Our Divine Saviour warned his disciples of this: 
“I have chosen you out of the world, therefore 
the world hateth you. Remember my words 
that I said to you : The servant is not greater 
than his master. If they have persecuted me, 
they will also persecute you.'' 

What was the nature of these attacks ? They 
were frequently the expressions of a pitiably 
mean rationalism and of a jealous incredulity; 
they were the outbursts of the hatred of some 
ultra-liberal men in public office. To preach 


74 


Life of Father Bernard. 


missions, they said, is to disturb the conscience, 
to arouse fanaticism, to cause confusion and 
public disorder. It is needless to reply to such 
accusations. Eighteen hundred years ago the 
Jews accused, before the tribunal of Pilate, the 
first Missionary of the zvorld of having stirred 
up the people, of having rendered them fanati¬ 
cal by the preaching of his Gospel (Luke xxiii. 
5). “ We see,” said Father Victor Dechamps, in 

1846, “that the adversaries of missions have 
made no progress since the time of Pilate, and 
that they have for them, or rather against them, 
but the^terrible argument of the cause judged on 
Calvary.* Let them remember these-words of 
Jesus Christ: ‘For every one that doth evil 
hateth the light, and cometh not to the light, 
that his works may not be reproved.’ ” 

The concourse of people was often so great 
that the church could not contain them. Conse¬ 
quently, the fathers preached from a platform 
erected in the open air. This occurred at 
Sittard, a small city of Limburg. The crowd 
was so great that not only the great square was 


* Saint Vincent et les Miserables, c. vi. 


Life of Father Bernard. 75 

filled, but the windows and even the roofs of 
houses were crowded with listeners. On this 
mission Father Bernard preached in German for 
the first time; besides the short instructions, he 
delivered a sermon on scandal, the effects of 
which were very wonderful.^ At the closing ser¬ 
mon, which preceded the Papal benediction, and 
which was preached by the superior of the mis¬ 
sion, there were assembled from twenty-five to 
thirty thousand persons, although the popula¬ 
tion of the city consisted only of four thousand 
souls. It was a magnificent sight to see these 
thousands of human beings, affected to^ tears, 
raising their suppliant hands towards heaven. 
The content and happiness of these pious people 
were expressed in the evening by a grand illumi¬ 
nation and exclamations of joy and delight.* 
In the months of May and June of the same 
year still greater wonders were witnessed at 
Tongres. The narrow limits of this sketch do 
not permit us to enter upon the description of 
them.f I cannot, however, omit to say that 

* yournal Hist, de M. Kersten, vol. ii. p. 48. 

f Ibid., p. 210. 


76 Life of Father Ber^iard. 

the remembrance of the spiritual favors with 

• 

which the ministry of the Congregation blessed 
the inhabitants of Tongres remained engraven 
on their hearts, and not satisfied with a renewal 
of the mission in 1838, they desired to hear the 
Redemptorists a third time in a Novena to the 
Blessed Virgin, celebrated in August, 1841. 
The principal part of this evangelical work was 
assigned to Father Bernard. Morning and even¬ 
ing he preached before the best families of the 
city on the sacraments, faith, the causes of unbe- . 
lief, the authority of the Church, and on the 
reading of bad journals, romances', etc. He ex¬ 
posed the absurdity of those free-thinkers who 
disregarded the authority of the Church estab¬ 
lished on divine and immovable foundations, 
while they crouch at the feet of miserable jour¬ 
nalists and writers of immoral books. In these 
discourses, says one who was present, he sur¬ 
passed himself in eloquence; magistrates and 
members of the bar, together with the popu¬ 
lace, admired, more than the beauty of his de¬ 
livery, the force of his logic, the connection and 
clearness of his arguments. During this no¬ 
vena the sermons were nearly all of a dogmatic 


Life of Father Bernard, 


77 


character, without losing anything of the per¬ 
spicuity and simplicity of language which the 
holy founder of the Redemptorists so forcibly 
recommended to his sons. This was Father 
Bernard’s custom whenever he preached in 
cities on other occasions than those of mis¬ 
sions. He was, however, never happy except 
when he drew the faithful to the confessional 
and to the holy table. And this holy joy was 
given him in 1841, in the ancient cities of 
Saint Maternus and Saint Servatius.* 

The mission of Tilff, which was called by 
Father Bernard the “famous mission,” opened 
March 24, 1838, under circumstances altogether 
unfavorable. Before the arrival of the mis¬ 
sionaries of the Convent of Liege, the liberal 
government notified the cure of an absolutely 
unconstitutional decree, which prohibited the 
planting of the cross in any part of the com¬ 
mune, and also all out-door preaching, without 
the written permission of the civil authorities. 
The letter charged the cur6 to inform the mis¬ 
sionaries of Articles 201 et seq. of the Penal Code. 
The fathers were nevertheless well received by 


Journal de KersteUy vol. iii. p. 297. 


78 


Life of Father Bernard. 


the people. The exercises were conducted on 
the 25th, 26th, 27th, 28th, and 29th, without the 
least sign of trouble. On the 30th another de¬ 
cree of four articles was posted on the door of 
the church, the first of which fan as follows: 

All out-door gatherings of more than five per¬ 
sons are forbidden during the sojourn of the 
missionaries in the commune.” 

The two decrees were annulled March 31, 
by the Baron Van den Steen, governor of the 
province. In consequence of this the Bishop 
of Liege ordered the missionaries to follow their 
entire course in preaching out of doors, if neces¬ 
sary, as well as in the planting of the cross. 
Irreligious liberalism did not acknowledge the 
defeat, 

Father Guersouille and Abbe Bremans, secre¬ 
tary to the bishop, were violently conducted be¬ 
yond the limits of the commune. Soldiers, rural 
guards, and some dozen clamorous persons took 
possession of the sanctuary, under pretext that 
the missionaries were strangers without pass¬ 
ports. Father Bernard was several times obliged 
to show himself at the window and bless the 
kneeling multitude, who, but for his interven- 


Life of Father Bernard. 


79 


tion, would have attacked the besiegers. The 
following day two fathers escaped from their 
prison and repaired to the church, preferring to 
be captives in the house of God than to remain 
inactive in the parish. Father Bernard in par¬ 
ticular exposed himself to the ignoble clamor- 
ings and to the outrages of a band of young 
men from Li6ge. Finally, the government of 
Leopold I. took the missionaries under its 
especial protection. A royal decree of April 3 
guaranteed freedom of worship, and on the 6th 
of April the cross could be planted in the 
church-yard, notwithstanding the clamors of 
the enemies of religion. The mission of Tilff 
may be considered one of the most successful 
of those in which Father Bernard took part. 

The events which we have briefly related are 
not the only painful reminiscences of the mis¬ 
sion of Tilff. The cross was cut down and 
overthrown on the night of the 23d of April, 
1838. A few days after the perpetration of 
this outrage, the authorities of the commune 
handed in a bill to the tribunal of justice at 
Li6ge, claiming church-yard property; but as 
delay was necessary, the suit turned to the con- 


8o 


Life of Father Bernard. 


fusion of impiety. The court of Liege declared, 
by a sentence of May 4, 1839, the claim of the 
commune of Tilff unfounded, and condemned 
the authorities of Tilff to pay the expenses of 
the lawsuit which they had commenced against 
ecclesiastical authority."^ 

Let us pass over these sacrilegious proceed¬ 
ings to return to the subject of this biography. 
We will mention a circumstance that occurred in 
a Walloon parish, and which shows Father Ber¬ 
nard’s never-failing presence of mind. The Re- 
demptorists, being conducted in procession to the 
village by the clergy and the pious faithful, 
found a mob formed against them. Having 
entered tlie church. Father Bernard boldly as¬ 
cended the pulpit, notwithstanding the threats 
of the multitude. He remained at .first per¬ 
fectly tranquil, slowly casting his looks over 
the agitated multitude, that was regardless of 
the holy place. “Unless you remain quiet,” 
he said at last in his firm voice, “ I will not 
tell you Avho we are.” The power of his voice 
having calmed the multitude, the orator con 

* yournal de Kersten^ vol. v. pp. 39 and 246 ; also, vol. vi. 
pp. 41 and 84. 



Life of Father Bernard. 8i 

tinned: “They say that we are, etc.; that we 
are, etc. And the foolish calumnies which they 
had spread were passed in review amid the 
sneers of the disturbers. But as the father pro¬ 
ceeded in his discourse their derision gave place 
to amicable feelings, and they listened with at¬ 
tentiveness. “This,” he added, “is my first 
point. You now know what we are and what 
we are not ; to tell you what we have come to 
do is my second point.” He then explained 
the object of the mission, announced the order 
of the public exercises, and explained the con¬ 
ditions necessary to hear with fruit the voice of 
God. After this singular sermon the success of 
the mission was no longer doubtful. 

It was not Father Bernard’s custom to re¬ 
fute the calumnies with which the enemies of 
religion filled their journals in order to foil the 
apostolic work. He knew the people of Belgium 
too well to suppose that the opposition with 
which he frequently met in the Walloon depart¬ 
ment came from their hearts. He triumphed 
over all these obstacles by the power of patience 
and of prayer, of talent and presence of mind. 
One of the most laborious and at the same time 


82 


Life of Father Bernard, 


most consoling missions given by Father Ber¬ 
nard was that which was opened on the Epi¬ 
phany, 1839, Comblain-au-Pont, a village 
situated on the hills at the confluence of the 
Ourthe and the Ambl^ve. Let us hear how he 
himself relates what sacrifices the poor moun¬ 
taineers imposed upon themselves when touched 
by the grace of God. ‘‘When I saw,” he says, 
“ these good people, without distinction of age 
or condition, climbing the hills two or three 
times a day, despite the cold winds, to await, 
morning and evening, their turn at tlie confes¬ 
sional, and so benumbed with cold that they 
were obliged to go from time to time to the fire 
in the sacristy to prevent their feet from freez¬ 
ing ; when I saw that on certain days they could 
not ascend to the top of the hill without the as¬ 
sistance of a rope which I ordered to be ex¬ 
tended ; when I saw old men of seventy and 
eighty years led to. the church by their children, 
then I understood these words of our Divine 
Saviour: ‘ The poor are evangelized.’ Grace 

made the inhabitants of Comblain-au-Pont a 
happy people. It was another proof that ‘ the 
kingdom of heaven suffers violence.’ But I was 



Life of Father Bernard. 


83 


also required to make a slight sacrifice. Four 
days before the close of the mission I made a 
false step ; my foot slipped while I was descend¬ 
ing a small staircase, and I fell on my back. For 
three days I was obliged to keep my bed, and in 
this position I heard the confessions of the men. 
The impossibility of assisting my confreres at the 
close of the exercises would have caused me 
more' affliction than the bodily pain, had I not 
known that this accident did not happen with¬ 
out the will or permission of God. The day 
after the close of the mission I went away 
limping, but interiorly rejoicing that I had 
not only been able to labor, but also to suffer 
something for the love of God. If you wish to 
ask God to preserve me from another fall, I will 
permit you to do so; but if I can save some 
unfortunate sinner from falling into sin, I will 
willingly fall a second and even a third time.” 

Father Bernard, having recovered from his in¬ 
jury, resumed his labors. In speaking of the 
first mission which followed his recovery he 
writes: “In preaching the word of God and in 
hearing confessions I have gained more strength 
than I had lost by my illness.” It was said of 


84 Life of Father Beriiard. ■ 

him at the convent: “ When Father Bernard is 
sick, it is only necessary to send him on a mis¬ 
sion ; to make him sweat profusely is sufficient 
to restore him completely.” Very true,” said 
he; “I have tried the experiment. In returning 
from Antheit* I was entirely cured. I felt my 
health restored after the famous mission of 
Tilff.” 

* Antheit is about a league distant from Huy. 



CHAPTER VII. 


FATHER BERNARD’S APOSTOLATE IN HOLLAND. 

T N November, 1840, Father Bernard, assisted 
by several of his confreres of Saint Trond 
and by some of the secular clergy, gave a mis¬ 
sion at Maestricht which lasted two weeks. He 
preached there before persons belonging to all 
ranks of society; soldiers were seen at the side 
of the villagers ; Jews and Protestants mingled 
with Catholics, all listening in the silence of re¬ 
ligious attention. The missionary rejoiced at 
seeing the number of auditors daily increase, 
and thanked them for the eagerness with which 
they came to hear the teachings of religion. 

“ You have listened to me with sympathy,” he 
said, “as I have explained to you the sublime 
dogmas of our holy faith. These dogmas are the 
fructifying principles. I will now draw from 
them the practical conclusions, and I hope that 
85 


86 Life of Father Bernard. 

you will not fear to come to listen to them and 
conform your life to them.” 

These words were particularly addressed to 
the wealthy portion of the parish. The entire 
audience remained faithful. While the father 
dealt formidable blows, while he exposed the 
condition of sinners, questioned, threatened, 
terrified them, and still encouraged them with 
vehemence and mildness, grace visibly did its 
work, and soon the emotion of the multitude of 
six or seven thousand souls was at its height. 
They wept, sighed, and cries of repentance be¬ 
came so loud that the sonorous and penetrating 
voice of the preacher could scarcely be heard. 
The effect was particularly noticeable during the 
acts of Reparation, of Honor to the Blessed 
Sacrament, and of Consecration to the Mother 
of God, and at the close of the exercises. The 
concourse was so great that many were com¬ 
pelled to remain at the door, and others climbed 
to the windows of the church in order to hear 
the words of Father Bernard. Rarely has sacred 
eloquence been more efficacious. Returns to 
God were abundant, and often truly extraordi¬ 
nary. At their departure the fathers could 


Life of Father Bernard 87 

scarcely tear themselves from the arms of the 
grateful inhabitants, who followed them and 
overwhelmed them with benedictions.* 

During the years 1841, 1842, 1843, ^^44 

the fathers were continually at work in various 
parishes of Northern Brabant and in Limburg.f 
Although frequently opposed by the intrigues 
of the enemies of religious liberty, the holy ex¬ 
ercises everywhere produced consoling results. 
Considerable restitutions were often made; the 
poor and the working-classes became fervent 
Christians ; persons of rank who had until then 
been noted for their indifference returned to the 
practice of religion. There exists on this sub¬ 
ject sure information which the future historian 
of the Congregation of the Most Holy Re¬ 
deemer will not fail to record. 

At the mission of Bois-le-duc, in 1843, Father 
Bernard had acquired such a reputation, even 
among the Protestants, that the lieutenant- 
general, Count of Limbourg-Stirum, military 
commandant of the province, came with his 
staff to visit and to present his compliments to 

* Journal Hist, de M. Kersten, vol. iii. p. 416. 
f Appendixes C and D. 


88 


Life of Father Bernard. 


the humble religious. la December of the same 
year (1843) ^ mission was given at Margraten, 
which was called the Model Mission. 

“The sermons,” says an account of that time, 
“ were delivered by the best preachers of Wit- 
tern, at the head of whom was Father Bernard, 
who may be called the apostle of Holland, so 
great is his zeal for the salvation of souls.”* 

Knowing the simple piety of the good inhabi¬ 
tants of Margraten, the fathers followed there 
the order which is observed in Italy. It con¬ 
sisted in having general communions for the 
different classes of persons; the first day was 
appointed for the children, the following days 
for married women and widows, then for married 
men and widowers, and finally for the young 
unmarried people. At six o’clock Father Ber¬ 
nard gave an instruction suitable to the state of 
life of those who approached the holy table; 
the instruction was followed by the singing of 
the “Veni Creator ” and the celebration of 
Mass. From the Offertory to the Communion 
the father recited the acts of the theological 
virtues, etc. At a sign given by the pastor the 

* yournal Hist, de M. Kersten^ vol, xi. p. 42. 


Life of Father Bernard. 89 

faithful approached the altar in the order ob¬ 
served by children at their first communion. 
What more touching than this simplicity ! The 
Catholic religion alone can offer so beautiful a 
spectacle; there is no other that can incite the 
faithful to such acts of humility. The reader is 
not to expect here a complete account of the 
uninterrupted labors of our missionary. Every 
week, day, and hour had its work. The exer¬ 
cises having been concluded in the church. 
Father Bernard found his way to the workshops 
to carry to the laborers the words of grace and 
salvation. He heard the confessions of the sick 
and infirm at their houses; he went in search of 
sinners even into their own dwellings, and he 
frequently had the consolation of bringing these 
strayed sheep back to the fold. At other times 
he was less successful in these labors inspired by 
his zeal. This proved t-o be the case at a mis¬ 
sion given at Breda (July, 1842). He thought it 
his duty to seek an interview with General Baron 
Chass6, who had acquired a sad reputation in the 
Belgian Revolution,* and led a retired but irre- 

* Baron Chass6, commander of the fortress of Antwerp, 
unmercifully bombarded that city in 1830. 


90 


Life of Father Bernard. 


ligious life in Breda. The general received him 
with much politeness, but not without surprise ; 
he did not give him an opportunity to introduce 
his subject. 

“Father,” he said to him, “you would have 
done well had you become a soldier.” 

“ And you, general,” replied Father Bernard, 
“ would not have done wrong had you become 
one of us; you could have rendered eminent 
service to the Church.” 

The soldier did not appear to take offence at 
the compliment, but immediately changed the 
conversation. In parting the father affection¬ 
ately pressed his hand, saying, with a significant 
look: 

“ General, the moment to leave this world will 
soon arrive; I wish you a happy death.” 

Chasse was much affected on hearing these 
unexpected words, but unfortunately this con¬ 
versation was productive of no good result: the 
general was a Calvinist. 

At the mission of Breda a magistrate of the 
city, who was baptized in the Catholic Church, 
but who bore ill-will towards the fathers, pre¬ 
sented himself at the residence of the pastor 


Life of Father Bernard, 91 

where they lodged, and demanded their passports, 
without which, he said, they would not be al¬ 
lowed to remain in Brabant. The fathers not 
having these documents with them, Father Ber¬ 
nard very decidedly replied: 

“ I am a Hollander; I do not, then, recognize 
the authority of the government to prohibit my 
sojourn or my preaching in Brdda. This even¬ 
ing I will ascend the pulpit, and will tell the 
faithful that, in consequence of your prohibition, 
the mission will be discontinued from that mo¬ 
ment. But it is useless to add, sir, that the con¬ 
sequences of this resolution will be imputed to 
you ; you will be responsible, understand it well, 
for whatever happens. I advise you to be pru¬ 
dent ; for you cannot be ignorant of the feelings 
of all the Catholics of your city towards us.’* 

This courageous reply quite disconcerted the 
functionary; but he had recourse to another 
expedient. He applied to the governor of the 
province, M. Borret, who was a sincere Catholic 
and much attached to the fathers, and asked 
him to act according to the law. M. Borret 
baffled the intrigue, without, however, failing in 
his duty. After a delay of a few days he wrote 


92 Life of Father Bernard. 

to the magistrate, and informed him that the 
Redemptorists had a house at Wittem, which 
belonged to a province of the kingdom, and 
consequently did not need passports. At the 
same time he requested the magistrate to en¬ 
quire whether the missionaries of Breda be¬ 
longed to the house of Wittem, adding that he 
awaited the result of the investigation before 
taking further steps. In the meantime the ex¬ 
ercises continued with such success that. the 
magistrate saw that it would not be worth the 
trouble to urge the matter at the risk of drawdng 
upon himself the indignation of the entire city. 
The public prayers and sermons produced during 
this mission still greater fruits of grace and sal¬ 
vation. 

I cannot omit relating another incident which 
shows us both the courage of our missionary 
and the kind of enemies he encountered. 

On the very day of the opening of the mission 
at Grave, in Northern Brabant, a circus troupe 
came to give an exhibition to the public. This 
was apparently a plot formed by some bad cha¬ 
racters of the place, who aimed at preventing 
the holy exercises. But Father Bernard was so 


Life of Father Bernard, 


93 


sure of the good dispositions of his auditors 
that he hoped, by the grace of God, to make 
the troupe leave the city. 

“ My brethren,” he said from the pulpit, an 
infernal plot has been formed against you; a 
circus troupe has come from Antwerp, bringing 
you frivolous amusements and dissipation. We, 
the ministers of the Most High, have come to 
preach recollection, penance, and return to God. 
Heaven and hell cannot be united? Con¬ 
sequently, I make the painful announcement 
that the mission, which ought to constitute your 
happiness, has been interrupted, and it discon¬ 
tinues from this moment. . . . Saint Alphonsus 
acted in the same manner under similar circum¬ 
stances ; we must imitate his great example, 
and abandon ybu to yourselves.” 

At this announcement the people were thun¬ 
derstruck, and the religious portion of the popu¬ 
lation used violence to prevent the departure 
of the fathers. The burgomaster interceded 
with the villagers to request the fathers not to 
carry out the resolution they had announced in 
.the church. He said that the troupe had come 
without his knowledge, and, by an unfortunate 


94 


Life of Father Bernard. 


coincidence, precisely at the time of the mission. 
Father Bernard, nevertheless, remained firm, and 
informed the magistrate that worldly amuse¬ 
ments and religious ceremonies could in no wise 
be united. 

The burgomaster agreed to this ; and, fearing 
a disturbance if the fathers should leave, pro¬ 
mised to use his efforts to obviate all diffi¬ 
culties. 

The manager of the circus came to apologize 
to the fathers of the mission, and openly avowed 
that they had been sent for by some residents 
of the city. He, moreover, promised to leave, if 
the fathers would give him one hundred florins 
to defray expenses. Father Bernard laughingly 
replied that, not having called them to Grave, 
he would not pay their travelling expenses; 
that they were free to remain, and the fathers 
would leave that instant. The manager was 
not a little surprised at this firmness, and the 
civil magistrate was left in embarrassment. 
From the dispositions of the inhabitants they 
were wise enough to see that the best plan was 
to abandon their designs and to decamp. The, 
next day, to the great disappointment of the 


Life of Father Bernard. 


95 


wicked, the circus was closed, and the manager 
with his troupe returned to Antwerp. The mis¬ 
sion was crowned with success ; with the excep¬ 
tion of a few hardened sinners, the entire popu¬ 
lation approached the holy sacraments. 

The mission at Hulst, in Zealand, afforded Fa¬ 
ther Bernard another opportunity of showing his 
presence of mind and the energy of his character. 
On the arrival of the three missionaries before 
the residence of the dean of the city, the street 
was blockaded by a crowd of curious spectators, 
and a gendarme with official air placed himself 
•in front of the carriage in which the fathers 
were seated. 

“ Take care,” said Father Bernard with com¬ 
posure to the father who accompanied him, 
‘‘ we will have many difficulties to encounter 
here.” 

His anticipation of difficulties—I dare not say 
his fear—was verified. 

On the evening of the third day another gen¬ 
darme rang the bell at the dean’s door, and 
asked to speak with his three guests. Father 
Bernard quieted his two confreres and the af¬ 
frighted dean, and communicated to them the 


96 


Life of Father Bernard. 


plan he had devised. He proposed to interro¬ 
gate the gendarme, while his two companions 
filled the respective offices of clerk and usher. 

The father, seated in an arm-chair, addressed 
the gendarme with the gravity of a judge. 

My friend, what do you wish?” 

“ I am sent by my lieutenant; I did not come 
of my own accord.” 

“ Do not be uneasy about that; but who is 
your lieutenant ? ” 

“ Mr. N-, of Ghent.” 

“And what does he want with us?” 

“ I am to enquire whether you are strangers • 
or not.” 

“ Go and tell Mr. N-that we are natives of 

Holland, and that we exercise our ministry in 
Holland. And now, another word : should 
your lieutenant desire to know more, let him 
address himself to the chief authorities of the 
Hague; they will teach him how to treat the 
subjects of the king.” 

The poor gendarme, covered with confusion, 
commenced to stammer out excuses, and told 
his judge that he had also orders to learn the 
impression produced by his sermons. “ And on 



Life of Father Bernard, 97 

this point,” he said, “ I will be able to speak 
from experience ; for, although a Protestant, I 
have listened to your sermons, and they have 
deeply affected me.” 

He then took a humble leave of the fa¬ 
thers. 

It was thus that Father Bernard put in prac¬ 
tice the excellent advice which had been given 
him by his old teacher, M. Van Bommel: “ Re¬ 
ply to the evil-disposed by questions, and force 
them to submit to be questioned, instead of 
submitting yourself.” 

Those who know the mysteries of grace and 
its connection with suffering and prayer will 
not be surprised at the prodigious influence ex¬ 
ercised by Father Bernard, 

He possessed, it is true, all the human endow¬ 
ments which are necessary for a great orator,— 
“ vir bonus dicendi peritiis.” Of majestic ap¬ 
pearance, possessed of strong and flexible voice, 
rare facility of expression, ardent language, pro¬ 
found science—all were united harmoniously in 
his person. But his true power of expression 
came from higher sources; it flowed from his 
lively faith and his ardent love for Jesus Christ, 


98 


Life of Father Bernard, 


for the Church, and for souls. This triple love 
was the principle of his zeal and the source of 
his most beautiful inspirations. 

“ He was not only a man powerful in words— 
as but few men are—but he was also powerful in 
prayer. He possessed the spirit of prayer, which 
accompanied him in all his actions; and two 
things contributed with prayer to render his 
actions efficacious, or rather supernatural—these 
were his lively faith and his love of the cross. 
God always mingled bitterness with his success. 
I know it; he often confided it to me.” Such 
is the testimony given of him by his confrere 
and colaborer, the Rev. Father Victor De¬ 
champs, at present Archbishop of Mechlin. 

The reader will no doubt be pleased to hear 
Mgr. Dechamps again : 

“While yet a novice at Saint Trond I at¬ 
tended a mission sermon preached in the open 
air by Father Bernard before thousands of lis¬ 
teners. The master of novices. Father Villani,* 

* Canon Villani, a professor of the Episcopal Seminary of 
Tourna)% became a religious in 1833, taking the name of Vil¬ 
lani, in honor of P, Andrew Villani, who was Saint Alphon- 
sus’ confessor. M. Villani received his eminent pupil, Victor 


Life of Father Bernard. 


99 


a saintly man, seeing the impression produced 
on this weeping audience, addressed to me these 
words, which I shall never forget: 

“ ‘ What a misfortune would it not have been 
had such a man not become a missionary ! See 
what it is to follow one’s vocation !' 

“ I will give an example of his style of preach¬ 
ing and instructing. I was engaged in giving a 
mission at Chenee, near Lidge. Father Bernard 
arrived a few. days after the opening of the mis¬ 
sion, and asked me what was to be the subject 
of the sermon at High Mass. I answered that 
the order of exercises called for contrition, and 
I added: 

“‘You could not have guessed it; are you 
prepared ? ’ 

“ He replied : ‘ I will tell them the same thing 
four times, but in different ways; I hope thus to 
be understood.’ 

“ And he proceeded in the following order: 
First, he explained what contrition is; secondly, 
that which is but the appearance; thirdly, he re- 

Augustus Dechamps, into the Congregation of the ^lost Holy 
Redeemer, and was his director in the novitiate at Saint 
Trond. Father Villani died a holy death in 1838. 


100 Life of Father Bernard. 

presented to them a man who was really con¬ 
trite ; and, fourthly, one who was not contrite in 
the confessional nor elsewhere, neither before 
nor after the mission. I can say that one might 
have seen his words sinking into souls: ‘ Usque 
ad divisionem animae et spiritus.’ The true 
principle of his life, as religious and missionary, 
is found in the resolutions and prayers written 
by himself in a book of which he constantly 
made use.'* 


CHAPTER VIII. 


FATHER Bernard’s first voyage to 

AMERICA. 

'P'ATHER BERNARD’S apostolate was not 
^ confined to the European continent; Pro¬ 
vidence so disposed events as to transfer his 
talents and labors to the New World. We will 
first give an account of how the Congregation of 
the Most Holy Redeemer was introduced into 
the United States. At the request of Bishop 
Fenwick, of Cincinnati, Fathers Saenderle, Het- 
scher, and Tschenhers, accompanied by three 
lay brothers, left Vienna in 1832, and entered 
upon the work of the missions in the Diocese 
of Cincinnati, which at that time included 
that of Detroit. For six years they struggled 
against difficulties which rendered the establish¬ 
ment of a regular house impossible ; they could 
only establish stations at Norwalk, at Saint 
Mary’s among the Indians, and at Arbre- 
Croche. This last station, the most important 


TOI 


102 Life of Father Bernard. 

of the three, was placed under the direction of 
Father Saenderle. The first object of the Re- 
demptorists was to establish a central house 
which would serve as a rallying-point. Aban¬ 
doning their first posts, they established them¬ 
selves in 1839 Pittsburg,* which then belonged 
to the Diocese of Philadelphia. The following 
year the zealous Archbishop Eccleston, of Balti¬ 
more, made the Congregation advantageous offers 
of a church and a house, on condition that the 
fathers would devote themselves to the spiritual 
care of the German population of Baltimore, 
which comprised nearly four thousand souls. 
The proposal was accepted, and a new party of 
Redemptorists left Europe in January, 1841. 
Father Alexander Cvitchkowitz,. the former 
rector of the house at Wittem, left London with 
four young priests, three of whom had com¬ 
pleted their studies at Wittem. Maryland soon 
recognized the existence of the Congregation of 
the Most Holy Redeemer. In 1842 the Fathers 
were established in New York; in 1843, Phila¬ 
delphia; and in 1845, Buffalo. The same 

* The Convent of Pittsburg was the first that was founded 
by the Redemptorists in the United States of America. 


Life of Father Bernard. 103 

year (1845) Father Frederick de Held, the first 
Provincial of Belgium,* repaired to America in 
order to make a canonical visitation of the com¬ 
munities that had just been established there. 
He selected Father Bernard as the companion of 
.his voyage and labors. The duties which Father 
Bernard had yet to perform prevented his bidding 
farewell to his beloved parents; but, resigned 
and submissive, he offered this painful sacrifice 
to God, hastily made his preparations, and joy¬ 
fully commenced his voyage on the nth of 
April, 1845. Embarking at Ostend, our two 
religious directed their course to London, and 
from thence to Liverpool, where they were 
joined by three other Redemptorists. Oil the 
19th of April, it being Saturday, they left Liver¬ 
pool on board the steamer Hibernia, under the 
protection of the Immaculate Virgin, Star of the 
Sea. The first days of the voyage passed by 
very quietly; but on the 21st of April, about 
eight o’clock in the evening, a fire broke out in 
the kitchen, and the flames were extinguished 

* The province of Belgium was canonically erected July 2, 
1841. A decree of the Propaganda attached the Redemp¬ 
torists of America to the province of Belgium. 


104 Bemard. 

with great difficulty. During the night of the 
25th of April the sea became very stormy, and 
a new danger threatened them. On the follow¬ 
ing night the' tempest raged furiously. The 
violent and irregular motion of the ship, the 
howling of the winds, the cries of the sailors 
and passengers, all contributed to -increase the 
terror. On the 29th a new danger arose. The 
ocean presented a frightful spectacle : icebergs as 
high as mountains struck the side of the steamer, 
causing great damage to the wheels. Our fa¬ 
thers considered themselves at the point of 
death, thought only of their last hour, and 
heard each other’s confessions. To add to the 
misfortune, the rudder-chain broke, and the 
steamer was abandoned, in the middle of the 
night, to the mercy of the winds and waves. 
Contrary to all expectations, an Irish vessel, 
which was in search of seal that were couching 
on the ice, approached and kindly offered assist¬ 
ance. By the aid of the Irish sailors the Hi¬ 
bernia was delivered from danger on the 1st of 
May, the Feast of the Ascension. But another 
danger still awaited them. In the night of 
the 2d of May the passengers were suddenly 


Life of Father Bernard. 


105 


aroused from sleep by a cry of distress. Another 
iceberg threateningly and rapidly advanced ; but 
fortunately the crew got quickly to work and 
prevented the collision. Had they delayed but 
a minute, the vessel would have been buried in 
the abyss.* 

In these critical moments Father Bernard suf¬ 
fered all the miseries of sea-sickness, but his 
courage never wavered. He gives an account 
of this perilous voyage in a letter in which we 
read these lines, that afford another proof of 
his piety: 

“ Do not think I exaggerate in relating to you 
the triple danger to which we were exposed. 
But my principal regret was not to be able to 
say Mass. Where could the need of the divine 
mysteries be more sensibly felt than in the ter¬ 
rible position in which we found ourselves ? But 
God gave me grace to believe in his Provi¬ 
dence, and I repeated interiorly the words 
of the Psalmist : ‘ Ignis, grando, nix, glacies, 
spiritus procellarum, quae faciunt verbum 
ejus’—‘Fire, hail, snow, ice, the winds and 

* See letter of Rev. Father de Held to Rev. Father De¬ 
champs, in Appendix F. 


io6 Life of Father Bernard, 

tempests, obey his will/ When in my state¬ 
room, kneeling at the feet of Father Provincial, 
I made my general confession, which I believed 
to be the last of my life; when I renewed my 
religious vows, my soul, it is true, recoiled from 
appearing before its Sovereign Judge in the 
midst of the ocean. But when, on the other 
hand, I reflected that I was at sea by the will 
of God, in the interest of our dear Congrega¬ 
tion, at the side of our beloved superior, to 
whom I had resolved to attach myself until my 
last moment, then—yes, then—I repeated the 
above words of the Psalmist with the gratitude 
of a child towards God, and I felt comforted. 
I promised him that if it pleased him to save my 
life, I would serve him in future more faithfully, 
and would labor more zealously for the salvation 
of my neighbor than I had hitherto done., I 
pressed to my heart my crucifix, my rosary, and 
my rule; for, if it was the will of God, I desired 
to die like a true Redemptorist.” 

The following incident is characteristic of Fa¬ 
ther Bernard. His lively faith caused him to 
see the work of the devil in the furious tempest 
from which the fathers were saved. He went 


Life of Father Bernard. 


107 


upon the deck of the vessel, and, taking a hand¬ 
ful of blessed medals, cast them into the waves, 
as if to exorcise the sea. In relating this cir¬ 
cumstance to a confrere he said : 

It is true that we believe sufficiently in the 
presence of God ; perhaps we think too seldom 
of the presence and action of the devil. I 
learned this from an old person ; it is, moreover, 
something which I have often experienced my¬ 
self. It sometimes happened that I trembled in 
all my limbs before ascending the pulpit, even in 
the smallest villages. I had recourse to private 
exorcism, and every time I felt the salutary 
effects of them. In the same way I have fre¬ 
quently opened the lips of persons in the confes¬ 
sional which false shame, caused by Satan, had 
sealed.” 

Father Bernard practised it himself, and re¬ 
commended the use of private exorcism as an 
excellent remedy against sacrilegious confessions. 
For he who is convinced of the power of the 
devil, and believes in the supernatural, finds 
nothing therein which is not credible. Does 
not Saint Paul teach us that we must combat 
against the evil powers that fill the darkness that 


io8 Life of Father Bernard. 

surrounds us? * But to return to the voyage of 

1845. • 

When the missionaries arrived at Halifax, the 
provincial offered the Holy Sacrifice, after which 
the fathers recited the hymn of praise to God 
for having, in his merciful protection, preserved 
them from death. In August of the same year, 
1845, they left the snores of America to return 
to Europe, and on the 9th of September Father 
Bernard, after a prosperous voyage, again found 
himself in the midst of his confreres at the Con¬ 
vent of Wittem. During his short absence he 
not only visited, with Father de Held, the vari¬ 
ous communities of the Congregation, but also 
studied the religious character of the inhabitants, 
particularly of the Catholics. The cities of Bos¬ 
ton, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Pitts¬ 
burg, Rochester, Buffalo, Monroe, Chicago, had 
nearly all witnessed the power of his eloquence. 
He labored with fruit amongst those who for 
many years had not seen a priest. Many 
bishops learned to know and to appreciate him 
as the type of a missionary, as a man capable of 


Eph. vi. 


Life of Father Bernard. 109 

doing great things. Father Bernard’s corre¬ 
spondence testified to the ardor with which 
he endeavored to obtain information on all 
the questions which occupied the American 
clergy, as education, the scarcity of priests 
and churches, the absence of a truly Christian 
spirit in the great mass of the people, the prose- 
lytism carried on by the sects which overrun the 
United States. His superiors had particularly 
this end in view in giving him as a companion to 
the visitor. This was to be an exploring tour, 
an immediate preparation for the apostolic ca¬ 
reer that awaited Father Bernard beyond the 
seas; and as in Belgium, and particularly in 
Liege, he had given the strongest impulse to 
the work of the missions, so he was destined to 
extend it to the New World, and to introduce 
there the salutary influence of the priests of the 
Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. 

The progress of the Congregation in America 
was very remarkable after the foundation of 
the convent at Pittsburg. The labors of the 
fathers in behalf of poor Catholics, and es¬ 
pecially of the German immigrants, gained 
for them the affection of all. Many among 


no Life of Father Bernard, 

them terminated their earthly career with 
the reputation of extraordinary virtue. We 
will name but Father Francis Poilvache, 
who died at Monroe, January 26, 1848, and 
Father Czackert, who died on the 2d of the fol¬ 
lowing September, a victim to his charity, in 
administering to those who were attacked with 
the yellow fever, which broke out in New Or¬ 
leans.* 

*See Appendix G, Sketch of the Life of Father Poilvache. 


CHAPTER IX. 


FATHER BERNARD RESUMES HiS APOSTOLIC 


LABORS IN BELGIUM. 



CARCELY had Father Bernard returned to 


Wittem when he resumed the course of 
his usual labors, and until January, 1848, we find 
him nearly every month engaged in giving two 
or three missions or other religious exercises. 

I have already spoken of the mission which 
was given at Hulst in 1845. Father Bernard 
there triumphed over the ill-will of some men by 
his great energy, and over irreligion by his per¬ 
suasive eloquence. The same year he had the 
happiness to reconcile to God the half-savage in¬ 
habitants of the heath called “ Het Heiken,” on 
the confines of the barony of Breda and the 
marquisate of Berg-op-Zoom.* 

At the grand jubilee of Li6ge, celebrated in 
1846, on the occasion of the sixth centennial 


See Appendix H. 


12 


Life of Father Bernard. 


commemoration of the institution of the festival 
of Corpus Christi, many Redemptorists were en¬ 
gaged in the twofold ministry of preaching and 
hearing confessions. Father Bernard, who direct¬ 
ed the exercises in the Church of Saint Denis, 
preached every evening. The eloquence of Fa¬ 
ther Dechamps resounded in the cathedral, rival¬ 
ling that of Parisis, Giraud, Ravignan, Dupan- 
loup, and other orators of no less renown. The 
jubilee of Li6ge was productive of immense 
good. God, the just appreciator of the works 
of man, alone knows the share of merit that will 
fall to the sons of Saint Alphonsus for the great 
zeal which they displayed in these exercises.* 
For two successive terms Father Bernard was 
prefect of the second novitiate, which Saint Al¬ 
phonsus, in his Constitutions, prescribes as an 
immediate preparation for the missionary career. 
He possessed great art in encouraging the young 
priests under his direction, and in communicating 
to them the sacred fire of which they stood in 
need. According to the testimony of a father 
who lived with him, there never was a professor 

*Histoire du dioche de Liige^ de M. Daris, vol. iv. pp. 372-375; 
Journal Hist, vol. xiii. p. 145. 


Life of Father Berjiard. 113 

of sacred eloquence who could more successful¬ 
ly develop the oratorical talents of his pupils; 
after hearing him the most timid felt that they 
could preach. The prefect was justly appreci¬ 
ated by his superiors. This is proved by the fol¬ 
lowing letter, sent from Vienna by the Most 
Rev. Vicar-General to the fathers of the second 
Novitiate at Liege : . 

“ You are, then, going to take your flight. 
Soon you will fly; and as the bird is known by 
soaring, I hope to see in you, under so good a 
master, and one of so good a will, birds uplifted 
by the Holy Spirit. You are going to fly, not 
as a balloon—the work of the mind of man, who 
knows not whether it will be driven to the brink 
of a precipice or into the water—but as a spar¬ 
row or a wise turtle-dove, that never loses sight 
of its nest, where it takes refuge with its little 
ones, and is sheltered from the birds of prey. 
Fly, then, neither too high nor too far, so as to 
forget your novitiate, and the good resolutions 
that, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, you 
have formed. You have a good master; engrave 
in your minds and in your hearts the lessons 
that his virtue and experience dictate to you. 


114 Life of Father Bernard. 

in order to be able to unite the active with the 
contemplative life. 

Joseph Passerat, C.SS.R., 

“ Vicar-General.” 

Father Bernard had been sent to Li6ge to or¬ 
ganize and establish the second novitiate. He 
remained in this city from January, 1848, until 
the following October. The moment was now 
at hand to open the campaign in the American 
continent. This called for a veteran, inured to 
war, and one who was not to be overcome by 
obstacles. Experience, activity, energy of char¬ 
acter, robust health, and, above all, a spirit of 
self-abnegation, were necessary to ensure suc¬ 
cess. These qualities were all found united in 
an eminent degree in the prefect of the seconds 
novitiate. Hence he was appointed to the im¬ 
portant post of vice-provincial of all the houses 
and stations of the Congregation in North 
America, and,- invested with this office, he left 
Europe for the second time. Before commenc¬ 
ing his voyage, he went to Bavaria and Austria, 
in hopes of procuring some useful and zealous 
co-laborers. He communicated to his family 


Life of Father Bernard 115 

the news of his intended departure in such a 
way that all their anxiety was dispelled : 

“ What is, after all, this small sacrifice made 
to Saint Alphonsus in comparison to all the 
favors for which I am indebted to him ? I will 
be exceedingly happy when I hear that my rela¬ 
tives are as satisfied and as content as I am, and 
that my whole family, above all, my good 
mother, will adore with resignation the amiable 
decrees of Providence.” His mother was this 
time to bear alone the greatness of the sacrifice ; 
for his father had piously yielded his soul to God 
on the 28th of September, 1846, the eve of the 
feast of his patron. Saint Michael. The pious 
lady did not allow herself to be overcome by 
grief; and although her maternal heart heaved 
many sighs when her Bernard, returning from 
Germany, came to bid her farewell, still she did 
not the less courageously consign her child into 
the hands of her Saviour. 


CHAPTER X. 


FATHER BERNARD’S APOSTOLATE IN THE 


UNITED STATES. 


N the 20th of December, 1848, Father 



Bernard embarked at Southampton with 
four fathers of the order and ten nuns.* A few 
days after their departure such a violent storm 
arose that the captain declared that during the 
twenty-six years of his maritime life he had 
never witnessed a similar tempest. The vessel 
was frightfully tossed about; the cabin, which 
contained the sisters, was filled with water, and 
they thought their last hour had come. But, 
thanks to the captain’s presence of mind, and 
thanks, above all, to the divine protection, the 
ship was saved, and it anchored in the harbor of 
New York January 8, 1849. 

From New York the vice-provincial went to 
Baltimore, and fixed his residence in that city. 
After having investigated the condition of his 

* yournal Hist, de M. Kersten, vol. xv. p. 356. 


Life of Father Bernard, iiy 

religious family and of the Catholic population, 
he visited, in January and February, the cities 
of Pittsburg, Cincinnati, St. Louis, New Orleans, 
and several other places, braving the cold of 
winter and undergoing all kinds of hardships. 
“Occupations,” he wrote, “are not wanting. Tlie 
great responsibility to God, who has called me, 
and to our Congregation, that has sent me here, 
weighs heavily upon me. Little crosses are met 
with everywhere, and particularly by those who 
have the responsibility of governing; but when I 
see what others do and suffer here for God and 
for his Holy Church, I find my cross exceedingly 
light. . . . Tell all our fathers and brothers, 

all our acquaintances at Liege, all the benefac¬ 
tors of the Congregation, that I am well and 
always cheerful.” 

On returning to Baltimore at the close of Feb¬ 
ruary, he made, after a rest of three weeks, a 
tour of nearly nine hundred miles. He visited 
successively New York, Philadelphia, Rochester, 
Buffalo, and Pittsburg, preaching there, accord¬ 
ing to exigencies, in German, English, and 
French. No one could have been happier than 
he when he labored in Rochester among the 




118 Life of Father Bernard, 

French Canadians, who collected there on Sun¬ 
days at the house of the fathers. Three-fourths 
of them had not seen a priest for twenty or 
thirty years. In Buffalo he; superintended, rule 
in hand, the construction of a church; in New 
York he was, to use his own expressioh, nailed 
to his desk—he whose life had been until then 
but one public action. “ In heaven alone will 
repose be given me,” he writes ; “ and its joys, 
being eternal, will suffice.” 

In May, 1849, invited by the American 

episcT)pacy to take part in- the Seventh Provin¬ 
cial Council of Baltimore, in which he actively 
assisted the heads of the dioceses in their syno¬ 
dal deliberations. At the same period he com¬ 
menced to build a convent in that city, the ex¬ 
penses of which were chiefly defrayed by his 
friends in the Netherlands. He brought spirit¬ 
ual consolation to Catholics that were scattered 
in other places. At Uniontown he assembled 
the people every Sunday in a room to hear Mass. 
At Taneytown he could assemble them but once 
a month in a dilapidated house. He spent ten 
days at the German colony of St. Mary’s, which 
was entrusted to the care of his confreres. He 


Life of Father Bernard, 119 

travelled through the whole colony, sometimes 
on foot, at others on horseback. In this manner 
he penetrated dense forests and made his way 
over roads that were almost impassable. After 
some months’ sojourn in Baltimore, he again 
went to Rochester and Buffalo to inspect the 
buildings in course of construction ; thence he 
proceeded to Detroit. According to the wishes 
of Bishop Lef^vre, he undertook his first mis¬ 
sion in the United States. He preached for nine 
days in succession, three and often four times 
every day. He had rarely experienced such great 
consolation on a mission, on account of the diffi¬ 
culties with which he was met; “ for,” he wrote, 
“the Canadians of Michigan, having been neg¬ 
lected for a long time on account of the scarcity 
of priests, are not easily converted; they are 
lukewarm and ignorant of all that regards re¬ 
ligion.” At the closing of the exercises he 
established the Confraternity of the Sacred 
Heart of Jesus, the Sovereign Pastor of souls. 
He then visited Monroe, where his heart was 
filled with consolation at seeing the many bless¬ 
ings that God had bestowed on the German, 
French, and English Catholics by the zealous 


120 


Life of Father Bernards 


labors of his confreres ; he then returned to Bal¬ 
timore, where he placed himself with renewed 
ardor at his writing-desk. 

But all was not joy and happiness in a foreign 
land. The Congregation experienced a great 
loss by the fall of the steeple of the new church 
at Buffalo ; they were also necessitated to aban¬ 
don the colony of St. Mary’s, owing to a lawsuit 
and to pecuniary embarrassments. At Pittsburg 
the bigoted portion of the population, excited by 
the Protestant street-preachers, came one day to 
assault the fathers in their dwelling and in the 
church. They went to the last extremity, when 
the fathers, by the advice of the vice-provincial, 
handed over the keys to the mayor, who, be¬ 
coming responsible, stationed cannon around 
the buildings and dispersed the cowardly mob. 

These were sad trials, but Father Bernard was 
not to be discouraged. At the close of the year 
he wrote to his mother that he was' always cheer¬ 
ful and happy. 

“ If heaven blesses me,” he said, “ I attribute 
all to your prayers. I have now attained my 
forty-second year, and may yet be obliged to 
tread more than one thorny path, for in this 


Life of Father Bernard. 


I2I 


country nothing is gained without great diffi¬ 
culty ; but I leave all to God, who comforts me, 
and to his Holy Mother, whom I love and 
honor.” 

After having blessed the new church at Cum¬ 
berland by the order and in the name of the 
Archbishop of Baltimore, he made another trip 
to New Orleans. In consideration of the con¬ 
tinually increasing population in that city, he 
commended to the fathers the erection of a new 
convent. After the completion of this building 
he preached in three languages to the emigrants 
who had gone there to seek their fortunes. Al¬ 
though the sentiments -of religion were very 
weak in that section of the United States, he 
left it full of hope for the future. Provided with 
jurisdiction for all the abandoned stations 
through which he passed, he visited Mobile, 
Montgomery, Opelousas, Griffin, Atlanta, Au¬ 
gusta, Charleston, Wilmington, and Richmond. 
He frequently met with destitute Catholics, 
whom he instructed in the Divine Word; he 
often came in contact with the poor slaves, 
whom he consoled in their misfortunes. Fi¬ 
nally, he returned to Rochester, where the new 


122 


Life of Father Bernard. 


church had been completed, and the building of 
a convent was already commenced. 

Father Bernard spent but one year in the 
United States. In April, 1850, he visited De¬ 
troit and Monroe, where the fathers had achieved 
the most consoling results. Churches and con¬ 
vents were multiplied or enlarged. The fathers 
were of the most exemplary zeal; confraterni¬ 
ties and charitable associations of all kinds had 
been established, many conversions had been 
effected, many apostasies had been prevented. 
Thus, when, in the middle of the year 1850, he 
returned to Europe to assist at the assembly of 
the provincials at Bischenberg, in Alsatia,* he 
could represent the United States as a country 
blessed by God, and one that only awaited an 
increase of apostolic labors to become a land of 
astonishing fertility. Pope Pius IX. having, on 
the 22d of June, 1850, erected the American 
houses into a separate province. Father Bernard 
was promoted to the rank of provincial by the 

* Bischofsberg, commonly called Bischenberg, “ Moun¬ 
tain of the Bishop,” is situated five leagues from Strasbourg. 
In 1820 Father Passerat there established a community of Re- 
demptorists in a convent which had been abandoned. 


Life of Father Bernard. 


123 


assembly at Bischenberg, and in this capacity 
crossed the Atlantic for a third time. In De¬ 
cember, before his departure, he went to Amster¬ 
dam to visit his mother and to pass some days 
at the convent of the Redemptorists which had 
re(?lintly been erected in that city. As the 
Catholics were then celebrating the Papal Ju¬ 
bilee, he made it his duty to sit in the tribu¬ 
nal of penance, where he heard confessions in 
French, German, and Italian. Every opportu¬ 
nity of doing good to souls appeared to him one 
of those good fortunes that a Redemptorist can¬ 
not let pass. 


CHAPTER. XL 


FATHER BERNARD’S APOSTOLATE IN THE 
UNITED STATES—CONTINUED. ^ 

the 27th of January, 1851, Father Ber- 
nard left the port of Havre with the Re- 
demptorists, among whom was P'ather Charles 
Louis De Landtsheer, formerly Vicar of Melsele, 
in the Diocese of Ghent. The voyage was beset 
with dangers; several times the vessel was on 
the point of foundering. But heaven protected 
its servants, and they had the good fortune of 
anchoring in the harbor of New York, on the 
feast of Saint Joseph, March 19, 1851. 

During his sojourn at Amsterdam, in Decem¬ 
ber, 1850, our missionary visited the maternal 
roof and embraced his mother for the last 
time. She died a holy death on the 25th of 
January, 1851. This painful news reached Fa¬ 
ther Bernard when in New York. It is touching 
to read the lines in which he communicates to 

his brothers and sisters the grief of his soul; it 
124 


Life of Father Beryiard. 


125 


was Saint Augustine mourning the death of 
Saint Monica. 

“ I cannot conceal it,” he says ; “ although for 
twenty years. I have made to God the sacrifice 
of my parents and of my family, the death of 
my mother has not the less deeply afflicted me. 
Ah ! I know that I was her child—the child of an 
incomparable mother! We have known her in 
life ; her death has caused us to see still more 
clearly what a treasure the infinite goodness of 
God had given us in the tenderness of this cher¬ 
ished mother ! Ah ! how happy you are, you 
who have seen our mother on her bed of suffer- 
ing; you who have been able to address to her 
words of consolation, to give her the last filial 
kiss! It should be an alleviation to your grief 
tQ have witnessed her passage to a better^ife ; to 
have been able to entertain yourselves with her. 
As to myself, I find no one here who understands 
me when I speak of this good mother, when I 
mourn her loss. All I can do is to prostrate 
myself before my crucified Saviour, and to offer 
him as a son the sacrifice of the dearest of 
mothers. Ah ! more than ever do I thank God 
for all she has done for you and for me. I un- 


126 


Life of Father Bernard. 


ceasingly recommend her soul to him. Oh ! may 
our last end be like unto hers.” 

This tenderness in the heart of a religious may 
perhaps surprise those who do not know that the 
religious life does not stifle the sentiments of na¬ 
ture, but purifies and sanctifies them. The com¬ 
plete consecration of the heart to God does not 
require us to be less affectionate to man. 

“ The most austere virtue,” says Father Lacor- 
daire, “ does not exclude affection, but elevates 
and moderates it by mingling with our nature an 
element more than human.” 

This sad event placed Father Bernard in pos¬ 
session of a considerable estate. After finishing 
a retreat he thus wrote to one of his brothers : 

“ In meditating on the poverty of my Jesus in 
the stable of Bethlehem I‘made a vow to pos¬ 
sess nothing on earth.” 

In consequence he made a donation of five 
thousand florins, to the Netherlands for the 
school of Saint Vincent de Paul which had 
been erected at Amsterdam ; as to the rest of 
his patrimony, he left it at the disposal of his 
superiors for the benefit of the churches of the 
Congregation in America. 


Life of Father Bernard. 


127 


On the 2d of April, 1852, Father Bernard met 
with a new affliction in the death of Father 
Landtsheer, who was carried off by typhoid fever, 
which broke out among the immigrants in New 
York. This young missionary, who had been 
but one year in America, “ died like a saint, a 
victim to his charity for his brothers.*’ This is 
the testimony given of him by Father Ber¬ 
nard.* 

For twenty years the sons of Saint Alphonsus 
had watered with their sweat the soil of the New. 
World ; it was now time to cultivate it with 
order and to sow an abundant harvest. The 
work of evangelization must be accomplished by 
an uninterrupted succession of evangelical la¬ 
bors. 

The series of missions commenced in April, 
1851, in Saint Joseph’s Church, New York, was 
regularly carried on by several priests of the 
Congregation. The provincial, like a true general, 
fought at the head of this pacific army. He 
went from city to city, from State to State, 
giving the exercises, which were often prolonged 
for four weeks. The sermons were everywhere 

j 

* Revue Caiholique de Louvaitiy v. x. p. 174. 


128 


Life of Father Bernard. 


followed by remarkable conversions, the work of 
divine grace. The cathedral in New York, 
which accommodates from three thousand five 
hundred to four thousand persons, was filled 
even to the altar-steps. A dense mass of eager 
listeners thronged the church and crowded the 
entrances. Some climbed to the windows of the 
church, in order to hear the sermons. One day 
Father Bernard spoke on the mercy of God, as 
he alone knew how to speak of it ; and such was 
the impression he made on his audience that 
they sobbed aloud. The immense good he did 
on this occasion is known to God alone. 

It -was thus, according to the unanimous con¬ 
sent of witnesses, that the Congregation entered 
upon a career of prosperity, under the direction 
and through the apostolate of our Redemp- 

torist. 

-#■ 

We recall here with pleasure a circumstance 
which proves the exalted esteem which the 
American provincial enjoyed at this time in the 
Eternal City. 

The bishops of the United States had pro¬ 
posed Father John Nepomucene Neumann for 
the episcopal see of Philadelphia, which was left 


Life of Father Bernard, 129 

vacant, in 1851, by the translation of Rt. Rev. 
Francis Patrick Kenrick to the archiepiscopal see 
of Baltimore. Father Victor Dechamps, who 
w'as then in Rome, engaged in matters of busi¬ 
ness concerning the Congregation, was charged 
to hand to.Cardinal Barnabo, Prefect of the 
Propaganda, a letter from the Rev, Father 
Rudolph de Smetana, successor to the Rev. 
Father Passerat as vicar-general, together with 
a letter from Father Bernard, who was Fa¬ 
ther Neumann’s provincial. Both humbly re¬ 
quested the Sovereign Pontiff not to deprive the 
family of Saint Alphonsus of so useful a member 
as was the candidate of the American bishops. 
The cardinal-prefect opened the two letters, 
and, on discovering that one bore the signature 
of Father Bernard, exclaimed : 

“ Ah ! Father Bernard. He too would be an 
excellent bishop. I understand how, from his 
point of view, he had reasons for wishing to 
prevent the nomination of Father Neumann; 
but the Holy Father has reasons for not grant¬ 
ing his desire.” 

Father Neumann was preconized bishop in 
1852. He occupied the episcopal see of Phila- 


130 


Life of Father Bernard, 


delphia but seven years; death unexpectedly 
took him from his flock on January 5, i860.* 
After the third year, Father Bernard was re¬ 
lieved from the American provincialship. He 
returned to the rank of a simple soldier, and 
received orders to exert his energy in gaining 
souls to God, “ in spiritu et virtute Elise,” in the 
British Islands. 

* See Funeral Obsequies of Rt. Rev. yohn Nepomucene 
Neumann, D.D., C.SS.R., Fourth Bishop of Philadelphia, 
Philadelphia, i860. 


CHAPTER XII. 


APOSTOLATE OF FATHER BERNARD IN GREAT 
BRITAIN AND THE NETHERLANDS. 

T N the year 1852 the indefatigable missionary 
was appointed superior of the convent at 
Limerick, in Ireland, and was placed at the head 
of the apostolic labors of the Congregation in 
that country, as also in England and Scotland. 
H^resided there for three years. During that 
interval he gave missions in Limerick, Cork, 
Mallow, Dublin, London, Clapham, etc. To 
my knowledge, the accounts that exist of this 
period of his life are very incomplete. I have, 
however, before me a letter written from Lime¬ 
rick (May 25, 1873) to a Belgian Redemptorist, 
a portion of which I here insert: 

“As regards the missions given by Father 
Bernard in this country, I can only repeat what 
you already know of his labors on the Continent 
and in America. It will suffice to say that he 
excited the admiration of the people and of the 


132 Life of Father Bernard. 

clergy, who could not understand how he could 
speak in a foreign language so as to move an 
immense concourse to tears. This was of fre¬ 
quent occurrence, even when treating of dog¬ 
matical subjects or when giving instructions. I 
recollect having heard him in the cathedral of 
Cork, before an assembly of six or seven thou¬ 
sand persons. In this sermon he spoke of the 
duties of parents towards their children. After 
the sermon his hearers remained riveted, as it 
were, to the floor of the church, weeping and 
sobbing. The bishop—who is still living—re¬ 
ceived him in the sacristy with open arms, thus 
addressing him: 

“‘Indeed, Father Bernard, you teach us!’ 

“ The mission given by him in Saint 
Michael’s Church, Dublin, was one of the most 
wonderful he ever gave, considering the number 
of young men who returned to God. All the 
regular and secular clergy of the neighboring 
parishes testified to this fact; and to this day 
it is spoken of as the great mission. I should 
also add that Father Bernard was remarkably 
condescending towards the other fathers, and 


Life of Father Bernard, 


133 


that they considered it a happiness to be sent 
on a mission with him.” 

. In 1855 Father Bernard left Ireland to return 
no more. He repaired directly to the capital 
of Catholicity, where the provincials of different 
provinces were to assemble in General Chapter. 
He was to take part in the deliberations as 
elector for the provinces of Holland and Eng¬ 
land. We may well imagine his joy, on seeing 
once more the Holy City, the Roman College, 
where he had made his theological studies, the 
Basilicas, and even the more modest sanctuaries 
which he had so frequently visited in his youth. 
He saw too, on this visit, with unspeakable de¬ 
light, the great Pius IX., the fourth pope whose 
apostolical benediction he had the happiness to 
receive. 

After a continued absence of nearly seven 
years. Father Bernard returned to his native 
country, never more to leave it. In November, 
1855, we find him giving the retreat to the clergy 
of the Diocese of Ruremonde, in the seminary 
of that city. 

In February, 1862, he took a most active part 
in the sermons delivered in the churches of 


134 


Life of Father Bernard. 


Ghent on the occasion of the twelfth centennial 
of the death of Saint Amandus, the Apostle of 
Flanders. He preached every evening in the 
cathedral before an audience composed of not 
only the faithful of all classes of society, but also 
the cures of the city, the canons, his Grace Mgr. 
Delebecque, etc. One of the vicars-general 
said : 

“ One never grows weary of listening to him ; 
for indeed he preaches like a Holy Father.” 

He had lost nothing of that energy of mind 
and body with which he had commenced his 
ministry in 1834; the same fire of zeal still 
burned in his soul. 

At the jubilee of Ghent a French prelate, the 
Archbishop of Cambray, assisted at two sermons 
preached by Father Bernard. Every one was 
astonished that he could listen so attentively to 
a preacher whose language he did not understand. 
“I love,” he said, “to see that man in the pulpit; 
his mere action gives me sufficient satisfaction. 
Those penetrating words ought to effect an im¬ 
mense good to souls. I would be very happy to 
have such a preacher in my diocese.” As to the 
Bishop of Ghent, he ardently thanked the Re- 


Life of Father Bernard. 135 

demptorist apostle, repeatedly expressing the 
hope of again hearing him in his cathedral. 

From this time until his last mission, given in 
the spring of 1865, but six months intervened in 
which he did not give any public religious exer¬ 
cise ; during the rest of the time he took part in 
two or three missions or retreats. It is no exag¬ 
geration to say that during the last ten years of 
his life the entire kingdom of the Netherlands 
listened to his eloquence. It is impossible to 
enter into a detailed description of his apostolate 
in that kingdom. I will simply state that the 
record of his labors, as given in a sketch of his 
life written in Dutch, comprises 10 triduos, 20 
octaves, 29 renewals of missions, 176 retreats, 
228 great missions, not including many sermons 
preached on various occasions. 

Father Bernard, considered as a missionary 
and preacher of the Word of God, is to us the 
living expression of this saying of an ancient, 
‘‘ Totus in illis.” In his great zeal for the salva¬ 
tion of souls all his moral and physical powers 
were employed, and exclusively, in the noble 
work to which he had devoted himself; all else 
•to him was secondary and unimportant. To re- 


136- Life of Father Bernard. 

call sinners, to strengthen the weak, to encourage 
the good, to extend the kingdom of the Divine 
Redeemer, not only in the hearts of Christians, 
but also among those who sat in the regions of 
the shadow of death, was his apostolic work and 
his constant happiness. 

In 1856-57 there was question of confiding the 
Isle of Curaqoa to the Sons of Saint Alphonsus; 
but the project, owing to physical impossibilities, 
could not be carried out. Father Bernard felt 
somewhat disappointed. Believe me,” he said 
to one of his confreres, could the plan have 
been realized, I would willingly leave for the 
Antilles. I would still be able to work there for 
many years at the salvation of those poor 
people.” 

The fervent servant of God was soon to finish 
the course of his apostolic labors in the fulness 
of age and strength; but, as a valiant warrior, he 
was to die on the battle-field. We will see in 
the sequel that about four months before his 
death he had a presentiment of his approach¬ 
ing end. 


CHAPTER XIII. 


FATHER BERNARD AS PRIEST AND RELIGIOUS. 

T T AVING described Father Bernard aspreach- 
^ er and missionary, although imperfectly, I 
will now venture to give an idea of him in his 
character of priest and religious; but in this I 
must confine myself to a few characteristic 
traits. 

This powerful man, who from the pulpit filled 
the souls of his hearers with the most terrible 
emotions, poured the balm of consolation into 
the hearts of all in the tribunal of penance. At 
the altar he preached by his grave and recollect¬ 
ed appearance. He would have scrupled to say 
Mass in less than half an hour. The Mass was 
preceded by a long preparation, and followed by 
an equally long thanksgiving, at least when the 
duties of the ministry did not compel him to 
abridge this precious time. It was only neces¬ 
sary to see him recite the divine office or other 


*37 


138 Life of Father Bernard, 

prayers to feel one’s self drawn to fervor and 
recollection. 

The practice, above all others, of a true Re- 
demptorist, is that of the daily adoration of the 
Most Blessed Sacrament. Saint Alphonsus 
made this an express rule, which he confirmed by 
his example. Father Bernard loved our Divine 
Lord too tenderly not to have been a faithful 
observer of this point of the rule. He went 
daily to prostrate himself before the tabernacle 
to adore Jesus Christ, the Divine Missionary and 
Pastor of souls. 

It was there that his piety was centred, and 
there he found sweet repose ; there he enkindled 
in his soul the sacred flame of the apostolate. 
During his last illness he made his adoration in 
spirit; a student went daily to his bed of suffer¬ 
ing to read to him the Visits to the Blessed 
Sacrament^ by Saint Alphonsus. 

To the love of Jesus hidden under the eucha- 
ristic veils Father Bernard joined a tender and 
profound compassion for our Lord’s sufferings, 
and honored his Sacred Heart with an especial 
devotion. He made the stations of the cross 
daily, unless prevented by some serious cause. 


Life of Father Ber^iard. 


139 


In his sermons and conversations he took advan¬ 
tage of every opportunity to recommend this 
practice, the source of so many precious graces. 

In the house where he lodged during a mis¬ 
sion it was frequently noticed that he passed 
the night extended upon the floor. This was 
also his custom at the convent. 

In the interior of the convent his life pre¬ 
sented nothing extraordinary; he simply im¬ 
posed on himself perfection in ordinary things 
and in the observance of the holy rule. “ At 
work he was a man,” said one of his confreres ; 

in the community he was a child.” So well 
did he know how to mingle simplicity with 
obedience ; so much did his natural amenity con¬ 
cur to the charm of relaxation in the usual re¬ 
creations. 

He considered it as an inestimable grace to 
belong to the Congregation of the holy Bishop 
of Saint Agatha, and he venerated it as his 
mother. “ I am assured,” he wrote in his Man¬ 
ual, “ that Jesus Christ lovingly regards our little 
family, that he cherishes it as the apple of his 
eye. I have the most certain confidence that 
our little flock will always go on gradually in- 


140 Life of Father Bernard, 

creasing—not, indeed, in wealth and honors, but 
in promoting the glory of God, and in spread- 
ing by our labors a greater knowledge and love 
of Jesus Christ among others.” These were the 
very thoughts of Saint Alphonsus. 

Having been professor of theology, prefect of 
the novitiate, vice-provincial, and provincial, he 
knew how to communicate to those under his 
care that ardent love for science and for sacer¬ 
dotal perfection, that zeal for souls which burned 
within him, those supernatural motives which 
guided him in all things, and which he had 
drawn from the inspiring writings of Saint Al¬ 
phonsus and from prayer. 

It is true that he was not exempt from a cer¬ 
tain excess of warmth at times, and more than 
once his will got the better of him, as it were, 
under the impulse of the moment, and the good 
father was caught in the very act of harshness or 
impatience. These were his faults; but, like 
Saint Francis de Sales, he never made a truce' 
with his enemy,, and more than once he gained 
the victory over himself in critical moments. Did 
he sustain his opinion in theological discussions 
with too much ardor, or did he allow himself too 


Life of Father Bernard, 141 

great fervor in exercising the duties of his min¬ 
istry, he deplored it as a crime, an unworthiness 
in a religious, and he did not fail at the chapter 
of faults to cast himself on his knees and disclose 
his repeated failings. We are assured that in his 
zeal to make reparation he would have asked 
pardon publicly in the church, had his superiors 
not prevented him. This latter disposition was 
the effect partly of his natural uprightness of 
mind, and partly of that perfect self-abnegation 
which he had learned from the life of his blessed 
father. 

If he did not reach the eminent sanctity of 
Saint Alphonsus, nor possess the religious virtues 
of Clement Maria Hoffbauer, or even of Joseph 
Passerat, he took them as models. His order of 
virtue was to tend unceasingly to approach as 
nearly as possible the great Model of perfection, 
of whom he never lost sight, and who is none 
other than the Divine Redeemer himself. 

Although he was ever attentive to keep his 
mind in a state of recollection and to walk in the 
divine presence, he did not neglect every year to 
strengthen himself spiritually in solitude and re¬ 
treat. He used to say that he enjoyed the peace 


142 


Life of Father Bernard, 


of heaven when, after having passed some 
months amid the distractions which exterior 
labors and apostolic duties necessarily involve, 
he could enter into himself and provide for his 
own spiritual needs. 

Filled with a sense of deep gratitude towards 
God, it was his custom to celebrate the anniver¬ 
saries of his baptism, of his promotion to the 
priesthood, and of his religious profession, by 
special devotions commemorative of these happy 
events. At a mission in a village he was seen to 
pass the entire morning of the last day spent 
there before the Blessed Sacrament. On being 
asked the reason he unaffectedly replied: 

“ I have to thank God for having made me a 
priest; it is thirty years to-day.” 

When he returned from a city or village where 
he had been exercising his apostolate, it was 'his 
custom to devote the first day to reading hastily 
the periodical publications, so as to keep himself 
informed on the questions of modern science. 
He then recreated himself in reading the fathers 
of the Church, especially Saint John Chrysostom, 
in the study of some theologian, or in the 
composition of dogmatic or moral instructions. 


Life of Father Bernard, 143 

The active missionary again became the con¬ 
templative religions. 

Notwithstanding his rare faculty of speech and 
his vast science of religion, Father Bernard never 
entered the pulpit without suitable preparation. 
He knew how to speak, but he also wished to know 
in advance what was necessary to be said. With¬ 
in the four walls of his cell he wrote complete 
sermons, or at least made a sketch of them. In 
undertaking a mission he prepared his batteries 
during the journey, as also in free hours. 

“ They seem to think,” he humbly said, “ that 
to preach I have but to open my mouth ; the 
truth is, I need as much study and preparation 
as others. I have frequently found myself in 
such perplexity that I ran, with pen, ink, and 
paper, to. the Blessed Sacrament, in order to say 
there, ‘ My good Jesus, if it must be done in this 
manner, thou must surely come to my assist¬ 
ance.’ ” 

The reader has no doubt admired the tender 
affection he bore to his father and mother. He 
also cherished his kindred; absent or present, he 
was ever to them a counsellor, guide, and con¬ 
soler ; he participated in their happiness and af- 


144 


Life of Father Bernard, 


flictions. Whenever the duties of his apostolate 
permitted him to visit his family (which seldom 
happened), he was the joy of all. He conde¬ 
scended to mingle in the youthful recreations of 
his nephews and nieces; with those of mature 
age his conversation was full of animation, gra¬ 
vity, and edification. One day he was seen 
kneeling at the tombs of the members of his 
family, devoutly reciting the rosary; tears inter¬ 
rupted his devotion, and he exclaimed to those 
who accompanied him : 

All those who repose here were very good.’* 

But Father Bernard’s love was not confined to 
his family according to the flesh, nor to his bro¬ 
thers in religion; it extended to all the faithful, 
to the good, to unbelievers, and to sinners. This 
universal love of his neighbor had its source 
in the love of God, which was first in his heart. 
From this love sprang that unlimited devoted¬ 
ness,. that untiring activity, by which, after the 
example of the apostle of the Gentiles, he made 
himself all to all, to gain all to Jesus Christ, and 
it remained unchanged to the last day of his life. 

He possessed the secret of accepting with 
equal joy good or bad fortune. It was impossi- 


Life of Father Bernard. 145 

ble to detect in him the least shadow of prefe¬ 
rence, otherwise so natural to self-love ; no com¬ 
placency in his own labors, no discouragement 
from contradictions, no sadness on account of 
an injury. Insensible to the insults of the 
wicked, to certain prejudices of the good, he was 
indifferent to applause, and never permitted him¬ 
self to be elated by that sort of enthusiastic 
popularity which by degrees was attached to his 
name. If the hospitable welcome of the clergy 
of the parishes gave him great pleasure, forced 
privations, the fatigues of the confessional, the 
inconveniences of travelling, th-e dangers of the 
sea, did not disturb his serenity. He never 
knew fear nor betrayed cowardice; he was solely 
occupied with the glory of God and the salvation 
of souls. On extraordinary occasions, as on ordi¬ 
nary ones, he was admirably self-possessed ; he 
was ever happy and cheerful—always superior to 
events: “In verbo veritatis, in virtute Dei, per 
gloriam et ignobilitatem, per infamiam et bonam 
famam.” * 

The following little incident, although unim¬ 
portant in itself, will be interesting, as exhibiting 
* 2 Cor. vi. 


146 


Life of Father Bernard, 


a trait of his character. One day, in repairing to 
a village of Northern Brabant, he, in company 
with a confrere, travelled through one of those 
vast heaths which are frequently met with in 
those parts. The jolting of the heavy farm-cart 
in which they w^ere carried over rugged roads 
continually threw the two missionaries against 
each other. Father Bernard took pleasure in re¬ 
lating, with a hearty laugh, this little incident, 
from which they escaped without broken ribs. 
A few days later the two fathers were forced to 
accept of the use of a splendid carriage, drawn 
by two horses and mounted by footmen, whose 
livery was laced on all the seams. His com¬ 
panion felt uneasy, as so much luxury seemed 
but little in harmony with the voluntary poverty 
of the cloister. 

‘‘As regards myself,” humorously said Father 
Bernard, “ I am not in the least inconvenienced 
in this equipage : ‘ Scio abundare, et scio penu- 
riam pati.’* In coming we were knocked about 
in a cart, and we were satisfied; in leaving we 
are borne in triumph like lords; so, father, let 
us try to be resigned.” 

* I know both how to abound, and to suffer need. 


CHAPTER XIV. 


FATHER BERNARD’S TENDER DEVOTION TO THE 


MOTHER OF GOD, 



HE love of Jesus and Mary go hand in 


hand in the religious life and devotions 
of the true Christian. It is, therefore, not as¬ 
tonishing that Saint Alphonsus Maria de Li- 
guori, the tender lover of Jesus, was so devoted 
a servant of his Divine Mother. Wishing to im¬ 
part this united affection to his children, he thus 
wrote to them : 

“ All the members of our Congregation should 
have an especial love for Jesus Christ in the 
most Holy Eucharist, and for the Immaculate 
Virgin.” 

Among other pious practices in honor of 
Mary, he imposed upon them that of a daily 
visit and a daily recitation of at least the third 
part of the rosary. Not satisfied with fulfilling 
these prescriptions of the holy rule, P'ather Ber¬ 
nard endeavored to imitate in all things the de- 


*47 


148 Life of Father Beriiard. 

votion of the holy founder toward the Mother 
of God. 

Saint Alphonsus daily recited the five psalms 
composed by Saint Bonaventure in honor of the 
name of Mary. An old prayer-book, which was 
for a long time in Father Bernard’s use, shows at 
the place of these psalms traces which plainly 
indicate that he recited them, if not every day, 
at least very often. 

Saint Alphonsus honored in an especial man¬ 
ner the sufferings that the Queen of martyrs en¬ 
dured during her life on earth. In one of his 
admirable works he relates the following incident 
in the life of the -virgin Saint Elizabeth: 

“ It was revealed to this servant of God that, 
Jesus and Mary one day appearing to Saint John 
the Evangelist, he heard Mary ask her beloved 
Son some particular grace for those who honored 
her seven dolors. Jesus promised to grant them 
four special graces: first, that those who invoke 
this Divine Mother by her sorrows will merit to 
obtain before death a sincere sorrow for their 
sins; secondly, that he will protect them in their 
tribulations, especially at the hour of death ; 
thirdly, that he will impress upon their minds 


Life of Father Bernard. 


149 


the memory of his Passion, and will reward them 
eternally in heaven ; fourthly, that he will com¬ 
mit them to the hands of Mary, that she may dis¬ 
pose of them according to her pleasure, and may 
procure for them all the graces she desires.” 

Saint Alphonsus also recited every day the 
“ Chaplet of the Seven Dolors,” and wore this 
rosary around his neck.* Father Bernard faith¬ 
fully imitated this edifying example. The chap¬ 
let of the seven dolors which he used is now 
the property of one of his convents ; the happy 
possessor preserves it with religious respect. 

Father Bernard used every effort to spread 
among the people this devotion so dear to his 
heart. It is to him that the church of the con¬ 
vent at Wittem owes that magnificent Pieth 
which is honored there in the Chapel of Our Lady 
of Dolors, and to which Pius IX. has attached 
an indulgence of seven years and seven quaran¬ 
tines, to be gained by all those who recite be¬ 
fore it seven “ Aves.” Father Bernard estab¬ 
lished the custom of solemnly celebrating seven 

* This chaplet is composed of seven parts, forming each a 
“Pater” and seven “ Ave Marias.”. The popes have en¬ 
riched it with numberless indulgences. 


150 Life of Father Bernard. 

Sundays in honor of the Seven Dolors, and 
founded a perpetual Mass, to be sung on each of 
these Sundays. 

His Holiness deigned to grant a plenary indul¬ 
gence to all those who would piously consecrate 
these seven Sundays to the honor of Mary. 
Since then this salutary devotion has become so 
familiar to the inhabitants of Wittem and of its 
environs that the majority of those who visit the 
convent church go to prostrate themselves be¬ 
fore the erected by Father Bernard. Many 

sad hearts have found consolation ab the feet of 
this holy image; many sinners have been deeply 
moved and urged to return to God. Even a 
miraculous cure is said to have been effected 
there. 

The Immaculate Conception of Mary had an 
ardent and a learned defender in Saint Alphon- 
sus. As a proof of this see his admirable ser¬ 
mon and his theological dissertations on this 
subject; see also his vindication of those who 
had taken a vow to defend this great privilege, 
and to give, if necessary, their lives for Mary, 
conceived without sin. 

Father Bernard had taken this vow a long time 


Life of Father Bernard. 151 

before the declaration of the dogma. When, in 
1844, the Confraternity of the Immaculate Heart 
of Mary for the conversion of sinners was can¬ 
onically established in Wittem, Father Bernard 
was charged by the rector of the convent to 
preach the sermons during the octave ; he ac¬ 
quitted himself of this beautiful task with so 
much zeal, talent, and success that over four 
thousand persons were enrolled in the new con¬ 
fraternity, and in the succeeding years the devo¬ 
tion towards the Immaculate Heart of the 
Mother of God was gradually spread to the 
neighboring villages. Saint Alphonsus recom¬ 
mended the daily recitation, morning and night, 
of three “ Aves,” to be said prostrate, or at least 
kneeling, adding after each “ Ave ” this short 
invocation: “ By thy pure and immaculate con¬ 
ception, O Mary ! make my body pure and my 
soul holy.” Father Bernard faithfully practised 
this devotion, and he made it a duty to teach it 
to his hearers on the missions, and to his peni¬ 
tents. 

Saint Alphonsus placed all his actions under 
the protection of the Queen of Heaven, and 
termed “ blessed ” the action that was enclosed 


152 


Life of Father Bernard. 


between two “ Aves.” Plence the custom of his 
spiritual family never to begin or finish any ac¬ 
tion without having addressed a prayer to 
* Mary. When there was question of any impor¬ 
tant undertaking, his supplications became more 
ardent. He also desired the Redemptorist mis¬ 
sionaries to recite the Litany of the Blessed 
Virgin, the antiphon “ Sancta Maria, succurre 
miseris,” the prayer “ Defende,” and other pray¬ 
ers in her honor, as they approached the place 
where the mission was to be given. I need not 
say that our missionary fulfilled to the letter all 
the desires of his blessed father. He went even 
further. In his Manual of piety was found a 
long Latin prayer, written with his own hand, 
and probably composed by himself. The title of 
it is, “ Prayer to the Mother of the Divine Pas¬ 
tor,* to be recited by the fathers in the visit to 

^ The feast of the. Mother of the Divine Pastor is one of the 
special feasts of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. 
We read in the morning office of September 2 : “ Hanc 
autem boni Pastoris nostri Jesu Christi dulcissimam Matrem, 
ipsum inter ac nos, populum ejus et oves pascuae ejus, poten- 
tissimam Mediatricem, Pius VIII. Pontifex Maximus sacer- 
dotibus Congregationis Sanctissimi Redemptoris, ut sacrarum 


Life of Father Bernard. 153 

the Blessed Virgin during the course of a mis¬ 
sion.” I will give a translation of it here for the 
edification of both the clergy and the faithful in 
general: 

“Hail, O Mother of the Divine Pastor! O 
thou who art, after Jesus, my hope and my salva¬ 
tion ! I come to prostrate myself at thy feet. 
Permit me, I beseech thee, to rest here a mo¬ 
ment from my labors, and to entreat for this 
congregation and for myself great and new 
favors from thee. I believe that Jesus Christ, 
thy Son, is the pastor of these sheep, for 
whom he has willed to shed his blood and suf¬ 
fered the torment of the cross. I also believe 
that the price of this blood has been given to 
thee, and that no one perishes if thou deignest 
to regard him with mercy. I hear Saint Bernard 
assure me that it has never been known that any 
one who implored thy clemency was ever re¬ 
jected by thee. I hear Saint Alphonsus exclaim 
that no one is saved except through thy inter-- 
cession. O my good Mother! hear, then,- the 

Missionum a se obeundarura singularem patronani, peculiar! 
officio et missa tertio nonas Septembris quotannis celebrare 
permisit.” 


154 


Life of Father Bernard, 


humble prayer that I now offer to thee for my¬ 
self and for this congregation. If I have found 
grace with thee, save me and save those for 
whom I pray. They are thy children, but thou 
hast given them to me ; they are thy children, 
for thou lovest them as a tender mother loves 
her children. For their salvation thou hast not 
even spared thine own Son; thou hast delivered 
him over to death. But thou hast given them to 
me, that by my ministry they may be. converted, 
and that, being truly converted, they may love 
and praise thee and thy Divine Son for all eter¬ 
nity. Bless, then, O good Mother, O refuge of 
sinners ! and, after Jesus, their only hope ! bless 
the lost sheep of this parish. . . . May thy 

gracious hand lead to our feet even those who 
are the furthest from thee. May none who take 
part in this spiritual mission be lost, but during 
these days of salvation may all return by thy 
mercy to the pastures of Jesus Christ, thy be¬ 
loved Son. Grant them, as a manifest sign of 
thy mercy, an abundant source of tears, a con¬ 
trite and docile heart. 

“ Look down also upon us, thy servants, to 
whom Jesus, thy Son, has confided the ministry 


Life of Father Bernard. 155 

of reconciliation. Console us by thy favors in 
the midst of the labors that we have undertaken 
for the glory of thy Son. Strengthen our souls, 
that our zeal may not relax, but may become more 
and more fervent. Suffer not that excessive 
labor so to overwhelm our hearts and our 
thoughts that, forgetting ourselves, we neglect 
our own salvation and lose our own souls. May 
each of us persevere in his holy resolutions. 
May each of us reflect seriously on what he 
ought to do at this mission, and may he accom¬ 
plish in deed what he mentally proposed. May 
we all strive to advance in perfection, and, by 
the practice of meditation and fervent, ejacula¬ 
tory prayer, be united with God. May each one 
place a guard over his heart, and make a com¬ 
pact with his eyes, that his thoughts may remain 
chaste. May he be preserved free from the con¬ 
tagion of the world. Thus, full of merits, and 
having become dear to thy beloved Son, we 
return to our homes, rejoicing in the Lord at 
the thought that this mission is written in the 
Book of Life, and has prepared for us a recom¬ 
pense in heaven. Amen.” * 

* Appendix J, 


156 


Life of Father Bernard, 


The same Manual contains another testimony 
of the conformity of Father Bernard’s sentiments 
with those of Saint Alphonsus. Ill a prayer, en¬ 
titled Life in Mary,” he consecrates all his 
labors to the Immaculate Virgin. 

Father Bernard loved our Lord Jesus Christ 
and his Divine Mother; he loved the Church, the 
spouse of Jesus; he loved souls redeemed by the 
blood of Jesus. His entire life as missionary 
priest was the summary of this triple love. 

He was one of those men of lively faith by 
whom our Lord was pleased to bring about the 
salvation of souls. “Powerful in works.and in 
words,” he was to many the instrument of eter¬ 
nal salvation. The memory of his virtues, of his 
self-sacrifices, and of his success is a precious in¬ 
heritance to his brothers in religion. 


' CHAPTER XV. 


FATHER BERNARD’S LAST ILLNESS AND HOLY 


DEATH, 



HE year 1865 was the last of the life of 


the zealous missionary. In the beginning 
of May he went to direct a mission at Saint 
Trond, whither the fathers had been called by 
the dean of the district. He asked and obtained 
leave from his rector to profit by this opportu¬ 
nity to make his annual retreat of ten days in the 
convent of that city. 

It was there that he received a signal grace 
from heaven in the presentiment of his approach¬ 
ing end. 

He was so perfectly convinced that the work 
of his life had been accomplished that he made 
a general confession, in order to prepare for the 
great voyage to eternity. His only desire was to 
die in the Holy City, where heaven had called 
him to the Institute of Saint Alphonsus. He 
consulted his confessor as to whether he could in 


158 Life of Father Bernard. 

conscience ask the permission of the superior- 
general to go to Rome to prepare himself there 
for his approaching death. 

As Father Bernard desired repose only in so 
far as the Most Rev. Father Mauron approved 
of it, his confessor replied that he saw nothing 
contrary to the will of God in this request. 

After this, to remove all scruple, Father Ber¬ 
nard went to Antwerp to consult Father Loo- 
yaard, in whom he reposed great confidence. The 
latter, seeing his confrere in good health and in 
perfect calmness of mind, was struck with the 
assurance with which he spoke of his approach¬ 
ing death. He endeavored to persuade him that 
he had yet too much strength to consider him¬ 
self at the close of his career. He concluded by 
telling him that he could ask permission to go to 
Rome on condition that he would submit with 
perfect indifference to the decision that would be 
given him. His conscience being quieied by this 
conformity of opinion of his two confreres. Father 
Bernard wrote to the Most Rev. Father Mauron, 
and also informed the Provincial of Holland of 
the step which he had taken, confiding all to a 
kind and amiable Providence. He joyfully com- 


Life of Father Bernard. 


159 


menced the mission in the city of Saint Trond, 
which for the last time witnessed the zeal, the 
activity, and the eloquence of its favorite preach¬ 
er. The mission being concluded. Father Ber¬ 
nard returned by way of Wittem, where he re¬ 
mained for some days to take a short repose, 
preserving in the depths of his soul the call of 
death which God had caused him to hear. 

A mission, given in a little parish of the Dio¬ 
cese of Liege, crowned the laborious and fruitful 
apostolate of our Redemptorist. It was at Mont- 
zen, not far from Aix-la-Chapelle, about a league 
from Thimister, where he had given his first 
mission. 

The first communion of the children had been 
fixed for the last day of May. The father, hav¬ 
ing prepared them for the reception of the Holy 
Eucharist by a touching address, recited aloud 
the rosary, walking up and down the aisle to 
maintain order. Wishing to ascend the steps of 
the altar of the Blessed Virgin, before which the 
children were kneeling, he tripped against a 
bench which projected, and, seeing himself about 
to fall to the left, he instinctively straightened 
himself to the other side, tearing a sinew of the 


i6o Life of Father Bernard. 

knee, and fell helplessly on his back. The peo¬ 
ple came in haste to his assistance, and placed 
him on a chair; he continued to say, “ Hail Mary, 
full of grace,” as if he had not been in the least 
inconvenienced by the fall. Soon, however, the 
pain became so intense that by his request he 
was taken to the pastor’s residence opposite the 
church. 

Not being able to write himself, he dictated 
a letter to his family, informing them of his ac¬ 
cident, to which he signed his name. “ May the 
holy and adorable will of God be done ! ” were 
the concluding words. “ The will of God must 
be accepted without reserve this was his motto. 
This adorable will had been the rule of his life; 
it became his shield against the pains of sickness 
and the agonies of death. The physicians con¬ 
sidered his cure as certain, but intimated that it 
would require much time. The father, without 
losing his habitual cheerfulness, did not share 
their opinion ; the accident appeared to hiip a 
presage of death. On the day after he met with 
this accident it was announced to him that two 
fathers had come to-visit him. “This is kind of 
them,” he exclaimed; “let them come in im- 


Life of Father Bernard, i6i 

mediately, for I have not long to live.” He de¬ 
sired to read only ascetical works, to prepare the 
better for his journey to heaven. When he had 
gained sufficient strength to be moved in a car¬ 
riage, he returned to the convent at Wittem. On 
entering his cell he at first expressed hopes of 
convalescence, so as not to afflict the community ; 
but soon he was heard to speak only of his ap¬ 
proaching end, as if he felt the work of the dis¬ 
ease that was beginning gradually to undermine 
his constitution. 

There had not yet appeared the slightest 
symptoms of danger,* when, on the 21st of 
August, the new rector of Wittem arrived from 
America. 

“ So, then, my reverend father, you have come 
here to bury me,” were the words with which 
Father Bernard welcomed him. A few days be¬ 
fore this he was seen, with one of his friends, 
sitting in the garden near the vault. 

Look at the new addition to the vault,” he 
said to him ; ‘‘ the first crypt to the left is the 
place awaiting me.” 

All the while the condition of the invalid sen¬ 
sibly grew better, and God seemed to have heard 


162 Life of Father Bernard. 

the prayers that were daily sent up to heaven for 
the preservation of the life of the venerated 
father. For six weeks he had been obliged to 
remain motionless, with his leg bandaged ; but 
now he seemed to be recovering, and, by the aid 
of crutches, he was already able to walk about in 
the infirmary. 

This confinement in a cage was a torture for 
the active missionary, but he never appeared de¬ 
jected ; never did a complaint escape his lips, 
although his pains were intense. In the midst 
of sufferings, as well as in labors, he sought re¬ 
pose on the cross, in entire resignation to the 
amiable will of God. Nevertheless, he longed to 
engage in his accustomed work. The hour for 
the fulfilment of his desires seemed near at 
hand, at least to his superiors, and a new cam¬ 
paign was projected. His superiors promised 
that on the 28th of August he would give the re¬ 
treat to the Nuns of the Most Holy Redeemer, 
at Wittem, and then he was to direct the mis¬ 
sions at Bois-le-Duc, Zutphen, Arnhem, Utrecht, 
Harlem, etc. 

On learning this good news he said, “ I will 
resume my part in the great combat, provided 


Life of Father Bernard, 163 

there be any breath left me, or in case I am not 
in the other world.” In fact, Father Bernard 
was the only one in the community who was per¬ 
suaded that he was at the end of his career. He 
astonished every one when he spoke of his fall at 
Montzen as something very serious. “ This acci¬ 
dent is the answer from Rome,” he said, alluding 
to the request he had made to the most reverend 
father-general. On another occasion he said ; 
“ Our good God must have had particular de¬ 
signs with me in permitting this accident to hap¬ 
pen on the last day of the month of Mary, during 
the recitation of the rosary of Mary, and before 
the altar of Mary.” Contrary to all expectation, 
his sad presentiment was to be realized. From 
the beginning of August he began to suffer from 
asthma, but no one was alarmed. This trouble 
was thought to be the result of his prolonged 
rest, and that it would disappear on the resump¬ 
tion of labor. This was the first symptom of the 
disease which took him from the Congregation 
and from the Church militant. 

The state of his health had already permitted 
him to celebrate Mass several times in the pri¬ 
vate oratory. On the 25th of August he was 


164 


Life of Father Bernard, 


able to go to the church, and had the consolation 
of offering the Holy Mysteries in his favorite 
chapel, at the altar of Our Lady of Dolors. This 
was his last Mass. 

During the Holy Sacrifice he was suddenly 
attacked with great difficulty in breathing, and 
could scarcely finish his Mass. Returning to 
the sacristy, he sank into a chair, and, having 
been conducted to the infirmary, he said, on en¬ 
tering, “Ah! it is the second time I have come 
here; but it will not be long before you will 
carry me out'' It was evident that the thought 
of death never left him. 

This time his illness was attended by alarming 
symptoms. The physician, who was called with¬ 
out delay, declared that dropsy had attacked the 
right lung. All hope, however, was not lost, 
since respiration was not obstructed in his left 
lung; but it was feared that the fatal fluid would 
^encroach on the pericardium. Respiration be¬ 
came perceptibly more difficult, and at the end 
of three days his condition was so alarming that 
the patient himself considered his end very near. 

Upon learning of Father Bernard’s danger the 
Provincial of England, who happened to be at 


Life of Father Bernard. 165 

Aix-la-Chapelle, went to visit him. Father Ber¬ 
nard remarked to him : “ They laugh at me; 
they still speak to me of cures, but I know bet¬ 
ter ; I am certain that I am going to heaven.” 
Feeling his condition grow worse, he earnestly 
asked for the Holy Viaticum and Extreme 
Unction; and the superiors, having been ap¬ 
prised by the physicians that there was no 
longer any room for hope, resolved to satisfy 
his desire. 

The last rites were administered to him on 
August 27, the feast of the Sacred Heart of 
Mary. All the members of the community as¬ 
sembled in the infirmary and in the adjacent cor¬ 
ridor, as many as could kneeling around the chair 
in which the dear father was seated. When 
he heard the priest coming with the Blessed 
Sacrament, he exclaimed, with that love and 
that lively faith which had ever characterized 
him, Come ! come! O my Jesus ! come'" At 
the sight of his Eucharistic God, he extended 
his arms and joyfully exclaimed: Behold him ! 
behold him ! ” 

At the conclusion of the ceremony, he took 
his mission cross, his rosary, and his book of 


166 Life of Father Bernard. 

rules, and raised them as high as his shoulder. 
Then, breathing very heavily, and frequently 
pausing, he said: “ My brothers, my brothers ! 
behold the crucifix which has assisted me to 
convert so many unbelievers and poor sinners; 
the crucifix with which I have so often an¬ 
nounced the mercy of God and the hope of par¬ 
don. Oh ! how much I love it. . . . To have 
lived in the Congregation of the Most Holy Re¬ 
deemer, to be able to die in it, what joy, what 
happiness ! . . . My conscience tells me that I 
never resisted the will of God nor the desires of 
my superiors. . . . If I have addressed a 

harsh word to the least of my brothers . 

I am entirely resigned to what God wishes. 
Does he will that I should still work ? . . . 

I am ready for work ! . . . Does he will to 

take me from you ? Ah! well, to that also I 
submit ; for, dear brothers, I am sure of my sal¬ 
vation. . . . Soon I will be no more. Yes, 

beloved brothers, I am going to die. I have 
known it since my last retreat. ... I am 
going to paradise. . . . But be consoled, and re¬ 
double your prayers for me ; there above I will 
not forget you.” 


Life of Father Bernard. 


167 


This address lasted for almost a quarter of an 
hour; the father made it with an energy which 
far surpassed what his natural strength would 
have permitted. It was his last sermon. 

On Monday and Tuesday he had intervals of 
alternate hope and fear; however, the strength 
of the patient was perceptibly failing. He was 
attacked with such violent and frequent spells of 
suffocation that the doors and windows had to 
be thrown open. He could not endure the least 
covering on his chest. When on the threshold 
of eternity, he expressed the desire to renew 
his vows. The candles were lighted and the 
missal opened. The Very Rev. Father Konings, 
the provincial, began to read the formula aloud : 

“ Ego (I) Bernardus Josephus Hafkenscheid 
. . . ” The patient said in a weak voice: 

“ Once more, if you please, father; such things 
should be said energetically.” 

When these words were again pronounced, the 
dear patient repeated them in as loud a voice as 
possible. 

Congregationis Sanctissimi Redemptoris ” (of 
the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer), 
continued the provincial. 


/ 


168 Life of Father Bernard. 

“ Yes,” Father Bernard at once said, becoming 
animated and striking his breast. “ Redemp- 
torist! Yes, I am a Redemptorist with all 
my heart and all my soul. I have lived as a 
Redemptorist; as a Redemptorist I will die.” 
His countenance betrayed a holy transport. 
The assistants could not control their emotion, 
and the provincial himself could scarcely con¬ 
tinue. At the words, “ I renew the vows of 
poverty, chastity, and obedience,” he touched 
each time the Gospel of the Mass of Saint Al- 
phonsus. The ceremony being concluded, he 
tranquilly said: “ All is well. There now re¬ 
mains but to be said, ^ Profiscere' —depart, Chris¬ 
tian soul, out of this world.” 

In the evening of the same day the students 
approached his bed of suffering to receive a last 
advice and his last blessing. Raising his eyes 
and his hands to heaven, he said to them but 
these few words: “We will meet again in 
heaven. There, be assured, I will pray m.uch 
for you, that you may remain faithful to your 
vocation.” 

At another time the patient said to one of 
the fathers : “ Oh I our good God has ever shown 


Life of Father Bernard. 169 

me such great mercy. He still manifests it. 
I enjoy profound peace. I have not the 
least temptation, not the least trouble of 
mind.” 

The father remarked: “ You have so often 
said: ‘ Mother of God, pray for me, a poor 
sinner, at the hour of my death.’ ” . 

“Yes,” said Father Bernard; “the Mother 
of God cannot forget that.” 

To one of his relations who visited him he 
said: “ It is very singular how the world re¬ 
cedes from us. I no longer think of anything. 
I have no more regret at not being any longer 
able to give missions—nothing, nothing; all im¬ 
perceptibly disappears.” 

During the nights of Wednesday and Thurs¬ 
day his sufferings were more intense than during 
the preceding nights. In the midst of his suffer¬ 
ings he suddenly exclaimed: “Jesus, my be¬ 
loved Jesus, come to my assistance ! If it is thy 
will, O my God! Otherwise, not.” He longed 
so much to leave this world that, when his con¬ 
freres proposed to make a vow to the Blessed 
Virgin for his cure, he joyfully replied : “ Oh! 
we ought not to do that; I am so well prepared 


1/0 


Life of Father Bernard. 


now. I feel happy, and am willing to die. If, 
however, you desire it, fiat! ’’ It was thought 
advisable to insist no longer. 

The following night his condition remained . 
unaltered. During a painful attack he asked 
some relief of the father Avho performed the 
duties of infirmarian. He brought him the 
crucifix. The dying man kissed it tenderly, 
and enquired what time it was. 

“ The clock has just struck half-past one.’' 

“It is Saturday, is it not?” 

“ No, father, it is but Friday.” 

“ Still another day and night! ” In fact, 
Saturday was to be his last day. 

His devotion to the sufferings of Jesus was 
a great consolation to him during his hours of 
sleeplessness. He confided to one of his friends 
that he had passed the night in making in spirit 
the “ Way of the Cross.” Another time he 
smiled when the Father Rector came early in the 
morning to enquire after the state of his health. 
He seemed to say to him : “ Do not pity me ; 
for a night passed without sleep, as mine was, 
is not to be thought little of.” In fact, he sanc¬ 
tified his sleeplessness and suffering in constant 


Life of Father Bernard. 

union with the Passion of our Saviour, by medi¬ 
tation on the Way of the Cross.” 

Until the eve of his death the man of God 
continued to follow, to the extent of his 
strength, the spiritual exercises of the com¬ 
munity. He desired that, at the proper hour, 
the points of meditations should be read to 
him, that he should be reminded of the recita¬ 
tion of the Angelus, etc. On Friday his mind 
began to wander. In a moment of delirium he 
spoke unceasingly of ‘a distant voyage, and 
seemed much troubled. 

“ Father Bernard,” said the provincial, ‘^you 
have always obeyed promptly; obey once more, 
and speak no longer of that voyage.” From 
that moment the serenity of his mind returned, 
and never again forsook him. 

Towards evening the patient seemed to be in 
his last agony. The convent bell was rung, the 
wax candles were lighted in the chamber of 
death, and the community commenced to recite 
aloud the prayers for the soul departing. The 
father joined in the prayers with those who sur¬ 
rounded him, and answered to the invocations of 
the Litany as distinctly as possible. They inter- 


1/2 Life of Father Bernard, 

rupted the prayers for a moment, so as not to 
fatigue him too much ; but he requested them to 
continue, suggesting to the priest the word with 
which he was to resume. “ How beautiful are 
all these prayers ! ” he said. “ I thank you.” 

During the night he seemed to be continu¬ 
ally absorbed in the contemplation of heavenly 
things; at times he struck his breast in pro¬ 
nouncing the sweet names of Jesus and Mary. 
He had no longer strength to articulate distinct¬ 
ly ; his lips and his tongue, parched with the 
fever, had to be refreshed by means of a feather. 
In the midst of the agonies of death he did not 
lose the use-of his reason ; and when, towards 
the dawn of day, his confessor asked him if he 
desired to receive absolution and the plenary 
indulgence in articulo mortis, he replied by a 
look of joy, and made the sign of the cross, as if 
in the pulpit. Absolution was repeated in the 
same manner about eight o’clock. 

His agony then began. He was still heard to 
whisper: “Jesus, Mary!” These were his last 
audible words. The prayers for the dying were 
again said. While a confrere held in his failing 
hand the blessed candle, he began to breathe 


Life of Father Bernard. 


173 


very heavily; his face was covered with a cold 
sweat, his hands grew frigid, he heaved a deep 
sigh, and his eyes closed in death. 

The soul of Father Bernard left this world to 
receive the palm promised to the faithful soldier 
of Jesus Christ. It was Saturday, September 2, 
1865, about nine o’clock in the morning. C\jlM 

Thus died the apostolic priest; thus die the 
predestined. 

“ Happy are they,” exclaims St. Vincent de 
Paul, “who at the hour of their death see accom¬ 
plished in them these beautiful words of our 
Lord: ‘ Evangelizare pauperibus misit me Do- 
minus ’ (‘ to preach the Gospel to the poor the 
Lord hath sent me’).” They were fulfilled in 
him whose apostolate we have sketched. 

Bernard Joseph Hafkenscheid had attained the 
age of fifty-eight years, thirty-three of which he 
had passed in the Congregation of the Most 
Holy Redeemer, and thirty-one in the work of 
the missions. At the time of his death he was 
still in full possession of his mighty powers and 
at the height of his reputation. 

His death occurred on a very beautiful feast. 
On the 2d of September the Redemptorists 


174 


Life of Father Bernard. 


say the first vespers of the Feast of'the Blessed 
Virgin, Mother of the Divine Pastor, whom Pope 
Pius VIII. gave as an especial patroness to the 
priests of the Institute of Saint Alpho'nsus for 
the work of their missions-. Father Bernard, who, 
during his long missionary career, had not al¬ 
lowed himself a day nor an hour’s repose, could 
present himself before the Sovereign Judge under 
the protection of Mary, and say with confidence 
to Jesus: “Amiable Pastor, thou hast given thy 
life for thy sheep, and in dying upon the cross 
hast recommended us, who are the sheep of 
thy fold on earth, to thy most holy Mother. I 
have walked under thy pastoral crook, and hope 
that thou wilt now deign to admit me to the 
pastures of life eternal.”* 

On the 4th of September, after the final ser¬ 
vice had taken place in the church, the deceased 
was carried to his last resting-place by the pro- 

* Prayer of the Church on the Feast of the Holy Virgin, 
Mother of the Divine Pastor ; “ Domine Jesu -Christe, Pastor 
bone, qui pro ovibus tuis animam dedisti, nosque populum 
tuum et oves pascuoe tuae in Cruce pendens Matri Virgini cora- 
mendasti; ipsa interveniente concede, ut te Pastorem nostrum 
sequentes in terris, ad pascua seternae vitae perducamur in 
coelis.” 



Life of Father Bernard. 175 

vincials of England, of the I^etherlands, and of 
Belgium. They formed Avith the fathers, the 
students, and the brothers of Wittem, with the 
members of his family and some friends, an im¬ 
posing cortege, but marked with that simplicity 
which becomes religious poverty. The absolu¬ 
tions having been concluded, the body was de¬ 
posited in the crypt that Father Bernard had 
pointed out in the beginning of his illness. 
There it reposes in peace,-aAvaiting the day of 
general resurrection to share the glory of that 
soul whose labors and* sufferings it shared here 
below. 

On the mortuary tablet of Father Bernard 
are placed these words, taken from the Book of 
Ecclesiasticus, which are recited in the Mass of 
Saint Alphonsus: He was directed by God 

unto the repentance of the nation, and he took 
away the abomination of wickedness, and in the 
days of sinners he strengthened godliness.” We 
read also these words of the Prophet King: “I 
have declared thy truth and thy salvation. I 
have not concealed thy mercy and thy truth 
from the great council. Withhold not thou, O 
Lord! thy tender mercies from me.” Great les- 


176 Life of Father Bernard. 

sons of a life imbued with one thought, the will 
of God, and one sole ambition, the greater glory 
of God I It finished, as it had commenced, in 
obedience, in resignation, in self-sacrifice. It 
would not be just to allow the memory of such 
beautiful examples to perish. 


CHAPTER XVI. 


GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE WORK OF 
THE MISSIONS. 


T HAVE briefly sketched the life of a religious 
whom many of my readers have seen at 
work, whose powerful zeal they have admired, 
and by whose virtues they have been edified. 
The reverend clergy who have known this val¬ 
iant soldier of the Church will find that this 
sketch gives but an imperfect account of the 
labors which he performed for more than thirty 
years for the glory of God and the salvation of 
souls. 

Father Bernard was indeed an eminent mem¬ 
ber of the. Congregation of the Most Holy Re¬ 
deemer, but he was not the only one, nor was he 
the most eminent. In his apostolic career he 
had holy predecessors who had prepared for him 
the way; illustrious contemporaries who were 
his superiors and worked at his side ; and succes- 

177 


178 


Life of Father Bernard. 


sors still living whose exalted position forbids 
me to name them. His labors form, after all, 
but a chapter in a history already fruitful of good 
works and in names for ever blessed. In writing 
the life of one of its members I have described 
the apostolate of the Congregation of the Most 
Holy Redeemer. 

It will not be considered out of place to close 
this biography by some observations on the 
work which was at the same time his passion 
and his merit before God and men. 

Saint Alphonsus de Liguori announced the 
truths of faith and the duties of religion, not 
only in great cities, but also gave missions to the 
herdsmen and the artisans of the dioceses of 
Scala, Amalfi, etc. He desired that the mem¬ 
bers of his Congregation should devote them¬ 
selves especially to the evangelization of the poor 
in country places, without, however, neglecting 
the inhabitants of the cities, nor even the eccle¬ 
siastics. “ The principal end of the religious 
Congregation of which he was the founder was 
to labor, by preaching and example, at the refor¬ 
mation of morals, particularly among the poor, 
who are scattered throughout the country.” This 


Life of FatlLcr Bernard. 179 

Congregation was in a short time propagated in 
a marvellous manner, and Benedict XIV. con¬ 
firmed it by his apostolic authority; and the 
same pontiff having appointed him (Saint Al- 
phonsus) rector major, he excited his companions 
by his example, and animated them to the prac¬ 
tice of every virtue, in a manner truly wonderful.* 
His Congregation has spread beyond Italy, and 
even to the New World ; his spiritual children 
have walked in the footsteps of their saintly 
father in all countries where the public power 
has not prevented the establishment of colonies 
and the good that they desired . to effect. 

Saint Alphonsus accomplished in the latter 
part of the eighteenth century what Saint Vin¬ 
cent de.Paul had effected in the first part of the 
century preceding, and was guided by the same 
supernatural motives. The principle of their es¬ 
tablishment was “ faith working by charity ”— 
^ the most compassionate love towards man, in¬ 
spired by the most lively faith in Jesus Christ. 

It was the conviction of these two saints that 
the missions given to the faithful were sources 

* Bull of the Canonization of Saint Alphonsus Maria dc 
Liguori, Pope Gicgory XVI., May 27, 1839. 


i8o Life of Father Bernard. 

the most fruitful for the well-being of society 
and for the glory of religion—one of the greatest 
means of salvation that it pleased God to reserve 
for these latter times. It was to save souls by 
the ministry of simple and popular preaching 
that the one gave to the Church the Congrega¬ 
tion of the Priests of the Mission, commonly 
called Lazarists, and the other that of the Con¬ 
gregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. Of 
both it may be truly said : “ He is dead, but 
his faith still works prodigies by the mouth 
of his children” — Per illam defunctus adhuc 
loquitur. 

Let it not be said that the missionaries should 
confine themselves to the evangelization of the 
heathen; the annals of the Church and daily 
experience attest that Christians also stand in 
need of their zealous labors. 

History proves, on the one hand, that in the 
very bosom of Christianity circumstances fre¬ 
quently demand the extraordinary assistance 
furnished to the Church by the apostolate of 
missionaries. On the other, experience clearly 
demonstrates that there are always in Christian 
populations necessities that render the missions 


Life of Father Bernard. 


8 i 


extremely desirable and even morally necessary 
to many. 

Without speaking of the early ages of Chris¬ 
tianity, the heresies of the twelfth and thirteenth 
centuries found valiant adversaries in Saints Ber¬ 
nard, Norbert, Francis of Assisi, and Dominic, 
fathers of the many apostolic families that 
were spread throughout Europe. It was also 
by the assistance of missions that Charles Bor- 
romeo, Ignatius of Loyola, Philip Neri; Francis 
of Sales, Vincent of Paul, Leonard of Port-Mau_ 
rice, Bossuet, Fenelon, Rauzan, recalled thou¬ 
sands of souls to the faith, or revived the reli¬ 
gious life among the various European nations. 
Have the wants of Christians diminished since 
their times? Do incredulity and indifference 
make less ravages to-day ? Has not the diaboli¬ 
cal sect of the Jansenists left its footprints, and 
can we not see that the great Bishop of Saint 
Agatha of the Goths was providentially sent to 
combat against the coldness of these latter times, 
by enkindling in souls the smothered flame of 
piety? The thought uppermost in his mind was 
that of the missions; this work was, to use the 
expression of St. Vincent de Paul, the capital 



182 Life of Father Bernard. 

of his Congregation.” History proves that the 
Holy Ghost, who unceasingly guides the Church, 
ever supplies remedies for existing wants, and 
places spiritual missions among the great means 
of salvation that he procures for even the poor¬ 
est and most ignorant souls. 

Let us add to this every-day experience. If 
priests and the religious of both sexes who are de¬ 
voted by their state to the most holy duties feel 
the nece*ssity of retreats, the need of reflecting 
from time to time on the love of duty and the 
sacrifices which it exacts, it must be acknow¬ 
ledged that this same necessity exists, for far 
more powerful reasons, for the faithful living in 
the world. Where is the workman, the merchant, 
the tradesman, the magistrate, the soldier, who 
has not felt his prejudices vanish, and who was 
not reanimated with zeal, who has not blessed 
God, after having followed, with the necessary 
dispositions, the exercises of amission? Where 
is the man, entangled in the cares of life, who 
after these exercises has not felt n’lore enlight¬ 
ened in eternal truths, more resolved on the 
faithful observance of his duties, more pene¬ 
trated with the great motives which cause him 


Life of Father Bernard. 


183 


to act and suffer with patience, love, and joy ? 
“The word of God is living, efficacious, and it 
penetrates deeper than a two-edged sword,” says 
the apostle. The assemblage of great truths 
that the missionaries proclaim with all the sim¬ 
plicity and strength of the evangelical ministry 
cannot fail to produce these salutary effects, on 
the sole condition that divine grace is not ob¬ 
stinately opposed.* 

But what is the nature of a popular mission ? 
What is its end ? 

A popular mission consists, as is generally 
known, in a series of sermons, meditations, and 
pious exercises, directed for a certain number 
of days by religious or secular priests, for the 
conversion of sinners and the reanimation of 
the good. 

“ It is certain,” wrote St. Alphonsus de Li- 
guori to a newly-consecrated bishop, “ that the 
conversion of sinners is the greatest gift that God 
grants to the people. St. Thomas says that the 
gift of grace by which God justifies the sinner is 

* From page 177 I have but given in short the reflections 
of the Most Rev. Victor Dechamps, at present^Archbishop 
of Mechlin : La grande pensee de St. Vincent de Pant, chapter iv. 


pY\ CkM 


184 


Life of Father Ber7iard, 


a greater favor than if he gave him the beatitude 
of glory. Now, the conversion of sinners is pre¬ 
cisely the end of missions. Sinners learn to 
know the malice of sin, the importance of their 
salvation, and the goodness of God ; and thus 
their hearts are changed, they abandon their evil 
ways, and commence to lead Christian lives. In 
fine, wherever faith has been planted or revived, 
wherever morals have been reformed, the good 
has been accomplished by the missionary.” * 

The exercises of a mission tend to excite sen¬ 
timents of repentance and to form resolutions 
to lead a better life. The eloquence employed 
in the sermons and instructions is simple and 
popular. 

Together with subjects which excite terror, as 
the four last things, the crimes of blasphemy, 
impiety, sacrilege, etc., the missionaries speak 
of the mercy of God, the means of salvation 
offered by the Church, the sacraments of Pen¬ 
ance and the Eucharist, of confidence in the 
Blessed Virgin Mary, and of final perseverance. 

* Istruzione ai Fredicatori, S. Alfonso, p. 69, vol. x. See 
also Manuel du Missionnaire^ by Father Narnpori, SJ., and 
App. I. 


Life of Father Bernard. 185 

Eternity cries out, as it were, to force the sin¬ 
ner to know himself, to repent, to reveal all the 
secrets of his conscience to a priest whom per¬ 
haps he has never seen before, and perhaps will 
never see again; who will speak to him in the 
confessional words of reconciliation and of en¬ 
couragement ; who will teach him the means of 
satisfying the divine justice, and of leading a 
new life. The mission generally concludes by 
the renewal of the baptismal vows, the conse¬ 
cration of the parish to the Blessed Virgin, the 
act of reparation to the Blessed Sacrament, the 
solemn planting of the cross or the erection of 
the stations, the imparting of the plenary in¬ 
dulgence, the celebration of the Mass for the 
souls of the faithful departed, for parents, etc., 
and for the faithful that are present. 

Thus the few days occupied in a mission, with 
all the truths that it announces, all the works 
that it realizes and advises, become a source of 
benediction to souls that wish to profit by them. 
It is a work of instruction and of conversion, which 
undeceives those who try to deceive themselves, 
convinces those who are in doubt, reanimates the 
indifferent, and recalls the hardened sinner. It 


186 Life of Father Bernard. 

is an extraordinary means that attacks falsehood 
and error directly, boldly, and perseveringly; 
that overthrows them, and triumphantly rears 
truth on their ruins. Inveterate habits, old 
prejudices, when they are combated by isolated 
sermons, always find some corner in the heart 
where they are concealed and nourished; but in 
the course of a mission the hearer is forcibly 
reminded, day after day, of the enormity of his 
crimes and the consequences of his blindness, 
and can no longer conceal from himself his 
wretched state. Null marriages are validated; 
ill-gotten goods are restored ; sinful habits and 
criminal connections are broken off; feuds are 
appeased, injuries are forgiven, and lawsuits are 
settled ; peace returns to families ; and the general 
aspect of parishes and countries is improved. 
Where incredulity, immorality, dissension, re¬ 
volt, and insubordination reigned, the serenity 
of faith and good morals, union, love, obedience, 
and Christian peace, are established. Husband 
and wife are strengthened in their love and 
fidelity, and sanctify their state ; parents learn 
to govern their households in a Christian man¬ 
ner ; children to obey, respect, and love their 


Life of Father Bernard. 187 

parents ; servants, laborers, young men, those in 
authority, all learn to practise conscientiously 
and courageously that which .for a long time 
they observed -with lukewarmness, or had com¬ 
pletely forgotten. 

We do not mean to say that parochial missions 
have everywhere and always an immediate and 
lasting efficacy, but their usefulness cannot be 
denied, nor even their necessity in bringing back 
to the path of truth and virtue those who have 
strayed from it. Times remarkably evil, as are those 
in which we live, demand extraordinary remedies. 
That faith and the Christian life may replace im¬ 
piety and vice, it is* not sufficient that the paro¬ 
chial clergy appeal constantly to the people, and 
guide them by their daily teachings and example ; 
but it is necessary that a priest who has volun¬ 
tarily devoted himself to the .salvation of all 
Christians should use extraordinary means with 
all classes of society, and particularly with those 
who are most ignorant in matters of religion, in 
order to enlighten, move, console them; to 
wound them, if necessary, and then heal them 
by the wound itself. This is, in the order of 
Providence, one of the most efficacious means to 


188 Life of Father Bernard, 

establish everywhere the kingdom of Jesus Christ, 
so violently attacked in our days, the ruin of 
which would infallibly cause also that of the 
entire social edifice. 

Such is the task of the missionary priest. 

Let great intellects dispute as much as they 
like on the wounds of society, they cannot heal 
them without the assistance of good men who 
know not how to speak so brilliantly, but who 
know how to act and suffer, because they believe 
in Jesus Christ, and obtain from him strength 
different from that which is employed in books 
and in courts of justice. The unfortunate 
always stand in need of the missionary to assist 
and console them in their bodily sufferings, and 
communicate to the ignorant, to the guilty, and 
to the people in general the powerful aids of 
the moral and spiritual life.” * 

Experience has already too clearly demonstrat¬ 
ed that the elevated theories of the journalist, 
the mere ordinances of the police, the best regula¬ 
tions of the civil administration, are altogether 
inadequate for the moral improvement of the 

* Mgr. Dechamps, Saint Vincent de Paul et les Miserables^ 
chapter vii. 


Life of Father Bernard, 189 

people and for the relief of their miseries. The 
Church alone can reform and restore peace to 
society, by calling torpid souls to a sense of the 
Christianity of the Church, which alone can rule 
the rich as the poor, those who govern as well as 
those who are governed. The missionaries—we 
may well say the messengers of salvation to 
parishes—are, in this respect, the foremost and in¬ 
dispensable workers of the Church; their aim is 
eminently and Christianly popular; their concur¬ 
rence is even more necessary in those fields where 
tares have been sown by the disseminators of 
evil. 

In a word, to the tumultuous gatherings of im¬ 
piety should be opposed the pacific assemblies 
of religion ; at intervals the people should be 
profoundly moved by the voice of the ministers 
of God and the dispensers of his mysteries. 

It matters but little whether this apostolate 
is exercised by secular priests or by those be¬ 
longing to a religious community ; the princi¬ 
pal object is to preach Jesus Christ, and to 
restore to him souls redeemed at the price 
of his precious blood : “ Dummodo praedicetur 
Christus.” 


190 Life of Father Bernard, 

The secular priests who have been trained 
in our diocesan seminaries know the spirit of 
devotedness and of sacrifice that this part of 
the ‘ apostolate requires, and more than once 
have they united to manifest their zeal in the 
diocesan missions given in the cities and in 
country places.* But it must also be acknow¬ 
ledged that the greater part are devoted to the 
ordinary works of the holy ministry in the 
parishes, or to the education of youth in col¬ 
leges. From this point of view it may be said 
in all truth that the secular clergy are of them¬ 
selves insufficient to accomplish this work. The 
Church has wisely provided for this insufficiency 
in forming assistant-soldiers, who combat under 
the banner of a common discipline, and who can 
devote themselves entirely to this noble cause. 
To-day, as heretofore, the Franciscans, the Do¬ 
minicans, the Jesuits, the Lazarists, and the 
Redemptorists render invaluable service to re- 

*Mgr. Van Hemel, Vicar-General of Cardinal Sterckx, 
gives an account, in his Prkis de Rhkorique Sacrk, of the 
zealous labors of several cures of the Diocese of Mechlin 
after the Revolution of 1830. The same may be said of the 
clergy of other dioceses of Belgium. 


Life of Father Bernard. igi 

ligioii and to the Church. Intellectually and 
morally prepared, by a particular education, for 
the work of the missions, they are especially 
devoted to heal sick and guilty souls, and to 
renew the spirit of piety and repentance, not 
only by their example, but also by their teach¬ 
ings. The great Pius IX., in his beautiful en¬ 
cyclical of the 17th of June, 1847, calls the 
religious orders “ the choice phalanx of the 
army of Jesus Christ, the auxiliary forces which 
have always been the ornament and the bul¬ 
wark of Christianity and the state.’’* 

Not to avail one’s self of their devotedness, 
when the enemy is always advancing, is to show 
that neither Jesus Christ nor souls are loved as 
they should be. But what Belgian bishop has 
not appealed to their zeal ? And what pastor 
worthy of the name would not procure for his 
flock the benefits of a mission? 

*Lectissimas illas auxiliares Christi militum turmas quae 
maximo turn Christianae, turn civili reipublicae usui, ornamento 
atque praesidio semper fuerunt. 




APPENDIX, 


A. 


Testimony given to Father Bernard by the Rector 
of the Roman College {page 44). 

Tester ego qui infra, R. D. Hafkenscheid, 
Bernardum Joseph, patre Michaele, patria Am- 
stelodamensem, a die 8 novembris 1828 usque 
ad hanc diem fere per annos quatuor in hoc 
Collegio Romano Societatis Jesu studia theo- 
logiae dogmaticae absolvisse, scilicet annis qua¬ 
tuor theologiae dogmaticae, duobus annis theo- 
logiae moralis, sacrae Scripturae et historiae 
ecclesiasticae, anno uno linguae hebraicae: qui 
in omnibus iis summae diligentiae et maximi 
profectus certissima semper documenta dedit, 
adeo ut pauci cum ipso comparari potuerint; 
iis vero quae ad pietatem, religionem ct modes- 

tiam pertinent, sic semper satisfecisse, ut caeteris 
193 





194 


Appendix. 


exemplo fuerit, et sibi maximam laudem com- 
paraverit : quocirca in solemni praemiorum dis- 
tributione, sub anni exitum, et praemio coho- 
nestatum, et anno 1830 ad baccalaureatus, anno 
1831 ad prolytatus, anno tandem 1832, mense 
aprili, ad doctoratus gradus plenissimis suffra- 
giis promotum fuisse. 

Ex Collegio Romano Societatis Jesu, die 23 
aprilis 1832. 

J. Baptista D 0 S 3 I, SJ., 

Rector Coliegii Romani. 

[Sigillum SJ.] 


B. 


Explanation of a passage in the Letter of the Very 
Rev. Father Passer at {page 52). 

Since the Church has granted to all liberty 
of opinion in doubtful matters, the reader will 
perhaps be astonished to see the Very Rev. 
Vicar-General exact of Father Bernard perfect 
indifference of opinion on all subjects which 
do not pertain to faith. I therefore deem it 
expedient to give a few words of explanation. 


Appendix. 


195 


In a letter, dated at Nocera in 1749, Saint 
Alphonsus wrote to the rector of the house of 
Ciorani: “ As to the scholastic questions touch-, 
ing the sacraments, I do not wish opinions to 
be taught which are contrary to those that 
we hold in moral theology. I speak of pri¬ 
mary questions; for example, attrition, the 
minister of marriage, and also of the inten¬ 
tion that the minister should have to do that 
which the Church does, etc. In these ques¬ 
tions, and others of the same kind, I desire you 
to follow and maintain, as far as possible, the 
common opinions and those that I have taught 
myself in moral theology. Should the profes¬ 
sor hold, a contrary opinion, let him keep it to 
himself; he should, moreover, practise obedi¬ 
ence. . . . The common opinions are generally 
the most probable, and when we follow these 
we cannot be criticised.” * 

We here see that the holy and learned founder 
requires the professors to teach the common 
opinions on all primary questions. 

Father Passerat was too faithful a son of 

* CEuvres completes de Saint Alphonse, traduction du P. 
Dujardin, vol. xii. p. 203. 


196 


. Appendix, 


Saint Alphonsus to ask an arbitrary submis¬ 
sion that was not demanded by the saint him¬ 
self. But, in writing to Father Hafkenscheid, 
he had a particular reason to require, in advance, 
a perfect indifference concerning all opinions 
that did not regard faith. At that time Pro¬ 
fessor Gunther taught at Vienna a philoso¬ 
phical doctrine which appeared very danger¬ 
ous to Father Passerat, and which, at a later 
period, was condemned by Pius IX. The sys¬ 
tem of the Viennese doctor had many followers 
among the younger clergy. From this system 
the vicar-general wished to preserve the mem¬ 
bers of the Congregation of the Most Holy 
Redeemer. Not yet personally knowing the 
young doctor of theology, who applied to him 
for admission, he was right in putting him to 
the test beforehand by exacting submission to 
the superiors on all opinions that entered not 
into the domain of faith. 


Appendix , 


197 


C. 


The Convent^at Wittem {Page 63 ).—Father Ber¬ 
nard in the Netherlands {Page 85). 

The convent at Wittem, situated in Limburg, 
between Maestricht and Aix-la-Chapelle, was 
the fourth community founded by the Redemp- 
torists in Belgium. For a long time they felt 
the necessity of having a separate house for the 
students of the Congregation, the Novitiate of 
Saint-Trond being too small to accommodate 
them. They therefore purchased the ancient 
convent of the Capuchins at Wittem, near 
Galoppe, where the fathers had given their first 
mission.*''* The establishment of the Red com¬ 
munity at Wittem took place on the 12th of 
January, 1836, under the auspices of Father 
Czvitkovicz. In the beginning the new convent 

* This convent was built by the Count of Plettenberg the 
same year (1732) that Saint Alphonsus founded his Congrega¬ 
tion at Scala. During the French Revolution it passed into 
the hands of seculars, and was only restored to its religious 
purpose on its purchase by the Rederaptorists in December, 

1835. 


198 


Appcndix. 


was to be considered a house of studies ; but the 
people for miles around congregated there to go 
to confession and to hear the word of God, 
giving it the appearance of a continual mission. 

That part of Limburg in which the house of 
Wittem is situated was detached from Belgium 
in virtue of the treaty of the Twenty-Four Arti¬ 
cles. This was a dispensation of an amiable 
Providence, as the Congregation was thus placed 
under the sceptre of the King of the Nether¬ 
lands.* 

But this situation became, at the same time, 
dangerous for the convent at Wittem, and the 
religious could not conceal their apprehensions. 
Until then the Netherlands government did not 
permit any ancient community to receive novices, 
and it was feared that it would not be less in¬ 
tolerant with regard to a congregation of recent 
creation. 

King William I., fearing to displease the 
Catholics of his kingdom, did not take any meas¬ 
ures contrary to the interests of the religious in¬ 
stitutes founded since 1830. In 1840 he abdi- 

* Wittem has formed, since then, a part of the Diocese of 
Ruremonde. 


Appendix, 


199 


cated the crown in favor of his son, William II. 
The latter, acting from motives of justice towards 
his Catholic subjects, granted them, among other 
rights, that of religious associations and of the 
Catholic apostolate. The convent at Wittem 
was even recognized in an especial manner, 
thanks to the intervention of Gregory XVI., as 
William II. declared at his visit to Limburg. 
During the royal visit that he made to the con¬ 
vent, June 18, 1840, he said to the fathers: “ It 
appears that you are the Benjamins of the Pope ; 
for he has particularly recommended your con¬ 
vent to me.” On observing P'ather Bernard 
near him he said: “ Here is the man who ac¬ 
complishes more good with regard to morals 
than our army has been able to do evil.” ^ His 
majesty entered his name on the list of the 
benefactors and protectors of the house. 

The legal existence which the Protestant king 

* It must be remembered that from 1830 to 1839 Northern 
Brabant had a standing army of from 80,000 to 100,000 men. 
Two-thirds of this army were Protestants ; three-fourths were 
unmarried. The moral condition of such troops may easily be 
imagined. There is no exaggeration in saying that Father 
Bernard was the man sent by Providence to refor^n their morals 
by his preaching. 


200 


A ppendix. 


granted to the Redemptorists at Wittem gave 
him a claim to the gratitude of the community. 
Rev. Father de Held accordingly sent Father 
Bernard to the Hague, at the close of the year 
1840, to express to his majesty the sentiments of 
their gratitude. On this occasion Father Ber¬ 
nard preached in many churches of the Hague 
and of Amsterdam, and God gave abundant bless¬ 
ings to his zeal. His presence in these large 
cities drew the attention of the public to the 
Congregation, and soon after several priests of 
the Hague, Amsterdam, and Leyden sought for 
admission into the family of St. Alphonsus. 

From this time Father Bernard commenced 
the work of the missions in Northern Brabant 
and in Limburg. He also gave retreats to the 
seminarians, and by his zeal induced several 
priests to join him in his labors. From the year 
1842 their number became so great that it was 
evident the hand of God guided th^se new evan¬ 
gelical labors. 

In 1848 the Redemptorists established two 
new communities in the kingdom of the Nether¬ 
lands. Towards the close of the year 1855 
new province of Holland was established. 


Appendix, 


201 


Father Looyaard, a native of the Diocese of 
Harlem, sent me an interesting letter regarding 
these matters, a portion of which I here insert: 

“ You know the condition of the Catholic 
Church in our provinces from the beginning of the 
intolerant Reformation until the close of the last 
century. It must be acknowledged that the 
Revolution, with its motto of liberty and equality, 
has been advantageous to Catholics; but after 
more than two hundred years of persecution, we 
find ourselves in a state of inferiority and, we 
may even say, of prostration before the followers 
of Calvin and Luther. This is felt even in re¬ 
ligious discussion in so far as we generally con¬ 
fine ourselves to the defensive with regard to 
our erring brethren. 

“ Since 1842 the Redemptorists conducted the 
annual retreats given to the clergy in that por¬ 
tion of the Holland Mission which now forms 
our diocese.. 

“ Before his departure for America, and after 
his return from Ireland, the incomparable Father 
Bernard nearly always conducted these holy ex¬ 
ercises. 

“ During one of the first retreats he had an 


202 


Appendix. 


interview with Professor Broere, the principal 
editor of the review De Katholiek. He called 
his attention to the style of religious contro¬ 
versy then in vogue. ^ It betrays weakness,’ 
he said to him, ‘ to confine ourselves to the de¬ 
fensive. We are children of the Church and of 
the truth; our adversaries are heretics or unbe¬ 
lievers; it is, then, our duty to take the offen¬ 
sive, and to expose to the public the erroneous 
doctrines of Protestantism and of impiety.’ 

“ M. Broere and his learned associates. Van 
Vree, Wennekendonck, and others, profited by 
this observation. Of this we have sufficient 
proof in many articles of the Katholiek^ in which 
the writings of Protestants are attacked with 
wonderful vigor, erudition, and logic, and to 
which our adversaries have never attempted to 
reply.” 


Missions of the Rede 77 iptorists in Holland i^page 87). 

We find in the Jour^ial Historique et Litteraire 
of M. Kersten, tom. x. page 449 et seq. (Janu¬ 
ary, 1844), these observations: 


Appendix, 


203 

Since the royal approbation, granted towards 
the close of 1840, to the fathers of the Congre¬ 
gation of the Most Holy Redeemer in Holland, 
and for the free exercise of the missions in this 
country, these indefatigable workers have la¬ 
bored much in this portion of the field of the 
Church. The two vicariates of Bois-le-Duc and 
Br6da are the principal fields where they have 
exercised their zeal with an ever-increasing suc¬ 
cess. In less than three years more than one 
hundred thousand souls received through them 
the benefits of a mission ; seventy-five thousand 
in the vicariate of Bois-le-Duc alone. 

The soldiers are not computed in tlijs calcula¬ 
tion. The missionaries watered by their sweat 
eighteen places of this last-named vicariate, 
and fourteen in that of Breda. At the request 
of the late administrator of the district of 
Grave, Uden was the first place in which the 
fathers gave a mission. This was in October, 
1841. The first mission given in the vicariate 
of Bois-le-Duc was that of Tilburg, an enter¬ 
prising city containing twelve thousand Ca¬ 
tholics, and which was for a long time the 
headquarters of the army of Holland. This 


204 


4 ppendix. 


mission, which may be considered as the model 
of all those that followed, took place in the 
month of February, 1842, and was given in the 
churches at the same time. The results it pro¬ 
duced were so abundant and so permanent that 
they are still remarked in all classes of society, 
and especially in that class whose example ex¬ 
ercises the greatest influence. From that time 
all the good that could be expected from mis¬ 
sions in Brabant began to be seen, and the lapse 
of years has served but to confirm these im¬ 
pressions. 

As it would take too long to detail the suc¬ 
cess of e£ic\i mission in particular, we will give 
only the general facts, the truth of which has 
been guaranteed to us; although, being but 
counterparts of‘what is repeated in different 
localities, such guarantee is needless. Faithful 
to the rules and to the spirit of their order, 
the fathers remain in each locality at least ten 
or fifteen days, however small may be the num¬ 
ber of the inhabitants, so as to omit none of 
the most important exercises, and to gather at 
leisure the fruits of grace. 

However cold religious fervor had grown 


Appendix . 


205 


among the inhabitants, it was always revived 
towards the end of the mission. The touch¬ 
ing ceremonies of the Reparation of Honor to 
the Blessed Sacrament, the solemn consecra¬ 
tion of the parish to the Blessed Virgin, the 
Papal benediction, were everywhere accompa¬ 
nied with great religious solemnities. The 
rosary, preceded by an instruction (all accord¬ 
ing to the spirit of St. Alphonsus), recited 
with the people by a -father from the pulpit, 
was never omitted, even in the largest cities, 
as Breda and Bois-le-duc. This vocal and pub¬ 
lic prayer evidently draws down the most signal 
graces on the labors of the missionaries, and 
wonderful conversions are frequently the result. 
It is true that circumstances ordinarily pre¬ 
vented the planting of the cross, but it was 
often supplied by the erection of the stations, 
to obtain which the cures, in concert with 
their parishioners, spared no expense. They 
were often pictures painted on canvas by the 
best artists of the country, and valued at 
several thousand florins. 

As to the order of the exercises of the mission, 
it is nearly always the same. The Word of God 


2 o6 


Appendix. 


is usually preached to the people three times 
a day, and even four times on Sundays. An 
instruction is given early in the morning for the 
working-classes, on the obligations of a Chris¬ 
tian and on the manner of preparing for the 
worthy reception of the sacraments ; and, that 
every one in the parish may profit by these 
salutary instructions, they are usually repeated 
in the sermon at the High Mass, especially 
in villages. In localities where the spiritual 
needs require it, as in large cities, they never 
fail to discuss dogmatic truths, in order to 
strengthen those whose faith is wavering, and to 
recall the erring to the truth. In the evening 
they treat of the great truths of religion, in 
order to awaken sinners from their sleep of 
death, and to recall tepid souls to the fervor 
becoming their state. The “ Miserere” is then 
sung, followed by the benediction of the 
Blessed Sacrament. 

As to the favorable results of the exercises, 
one may form an idea of them from the faith 
of a people so attached to their religion, and 
where all ranks rival each other in doing good. 
It is a rare exception, even among the nobility. 


Appendix. 


207 


for one to reject the grace which is offered 
to all by the mission. We will say nothing 
of the tears which are so abundantly shed, 
nor of the sobs that drown the voice of the 
preacher, and often oblige him to discon¬ 
tinue. We will content ourselves with recalling, 
in passing, how consoling to religion it is 
to see so many sincere returns from error to 
truth, conversions as solid as they are numer¬ 
ous, those inveterate feuds changed into last¬ 
ing friendship, bad books burnt, scandals re¬ 
paired, criminal intercourses broken off or le¬ 
gitimatized, and considerable restitutions made 
both to individuals and to the government. 
It is certainly beautiful to see these parishes 
entirely freed from abuses in so short a time, 
and brought back to the spirit of piety, to 
the frequenting of the sacraments, devoted 
to prayer, and embracing with holy avidity 
the means of perseverance. What more im¬ 
posing sight than that of an entire city, not 
excepting men of letters and position, and 
soldiers, being invested with the scapular, or 
reciting aloud the rosary in honor of the 
Mother of God ! What may not be hoped 


2o8 


Appendix, 


for in the future from such a flock ? Other 
means are also employed to perpetuate the 
good arising from missions. Here is estab¬ 
lished a library of good books, there confra¬ 
ternities are formed ; in other places Confrater¬ 
nities of the Rosary and Scapular are re-estab¬ 
lished ; associations are everywhere formed 
against blasphemy. In many places such confra¬ 
ternities are formed, at the head of which are 
found ecclesiastics and the most eminent per¬ 
sons. But what contributes most to confirm 
the fruits of the exercises is the renewal of the 
mission—an idea for which we are indebted to 
the wisdom of Saint Alphonsus, who imposed it 
as an especial obligation on his children. Ac¬ 
cording to the holy founder, it should take 
place within six months at most after the 
mission, but to last for a shorter ti;ne, and 
to be conducted by a smaller number of 
missionaries. Experience daily proves the 
importance of these renewals. The good are 
strengthened; the weak are encouraged to 
lead good lives; sinners who at first escaped 
from the mystic net are generally caught at 
the renewals. These exercises are usuall}^ ter¬ 
minated by the renewal of the baptismal 


Appendix. 


209 


vows—a ceremony well adapted to crown their 
good resolutions. 

Together with this marvellous success, public 
order and tranquillity are never disturbed in mis¬ 
sions, notwithstanding the religious enthusiasm 
and incredible eagerness of immense crowds to 
hear the Word of God, which even the influence 
of the missionaries can scarcely keep within due 
bounds. From this it may be readily inferred 
why Mgrs. H. Den Dubbelden, Bishop of Em- 
maiis, and J. Van Hooydonck, Bishop of Darda- 
nia, asked this signal blessing for their respective 
dioceses. For they not only authorized and 
openly approved of missions, but they appreciat¬ 
ed this means of salvation for their flock so 
much that they never failed to be present, in 
person, iji the most important places, to close the 
elcercises by a solemn High Mass; not even the 
great distance of places nor the bad condition 
of roads prevented them from assisting. When, 
however, the advanced age of the Bishop of 
Bois-le-Duc prevented him from gratifying his 
desires in this respect, he requested his coadju¬ 
tor, Mgr. Zwysen, Bishop of Gerra, to take his 
place on these occasions, to which the worthy 
prelate most willingly consented. 


210 


Appcndix. 


Considering the beautiful examples given by 
the ecclesiastical superiors, it is not surprising 
that the secular clergy without exception not 
only asked for missions and renewals, but follow¬ 
ed the example of their bishops in taking part 
in these meritorious labors. 

The bishop barely intimated his desire, when 
the cures, to the number of fifteen or twenty, left 
their parishes to assist the missionaries in the 
conversion of souls. Rivalling each other in zeal, 
they sat from morning till night in the sacred 
tribunal, until the close of the mission. More 
recently still, at Bois-le-Duc, forty-eight worthy 
cures, having at their head three venerable deans, 
came to the spiritual assistance of its immense 
population. How edifying to see such union be¬ 
tween the regular and secular clergy; and above 
all, how useful is not this to the Church ! What 
Catholic heart will not nourish the sweet hope 
that the old faith and simplicity of manners, 
which of old distinguished Northern Brabant, 
will soon bloom again in a field so well culti¬ 
vated ? 

Since we proposed to speak in this sketch only 
of the more prominent works of the Redemptor- 


Appendix. 


2 II 


ist Fathers in Holland, without dwelling on the 
numerous retreats given by them on various oc¬ 
casions, both in the large and small seminaries, 
in convents, prisons, hospitals, and similar insti¬ 
tutions, we will return to the description of the 
fruits of the missions. 

The comportment of the Catholic soldiers dur¬ 
ing the exercises, when they took place in large 
cities where they were garrisoned, as Br6da, 
Berg-op-Zoom, Grave, Venloo, and Bois-le-Duc, 
was always worthy of attention and praise. 

As soon as the superior of the missions arrived, 
he made it his duty to call on the civil authori¬ 
ties, as also on the military officers, in order to 
take measures for the spiritual welfare of those 
under their command. The day Avas fixed on 
which the soldiers were to comply with their 
religious duties. At the appointed time they 
marched to the church in a body to the sound of 
martial music. They there found from ten to fif¬ 
teen confessors awaiting them. It is impossible 
to describe the lively and salutary emotion pro¬ 
duced by the spectacle of so many soldiers, young 
and old, all api)roacliing the holy table with 
that manly piety which becomes them. There 


212 


A ppendix. 


was not one of the superior officers who accom¬ 
panied them that did not encourage them by 
example having their beads publicly blessed, re¬ 
citing them with the people, being invested with 
the scapular in the presence of all, and following 
assiduously the exercises of the mission. Father 
Bernard, often struck by a piety so frank, and the 
edification that resulted from it, could not re¬ 
frain from publicly expressing his satisfaction 
and gratitude. 

The sick are also objects of the solicitude of 
the good missionaries. On the day following the 
close of the mission, after the Requiem Mass for 
the deceased of the parish, at which one of the 
fathers delivers a discourse on the souls in pur¬ 
gatory, they visit the sick, hear their confessions, 
invest them with the scapular, and impart 
to them the Papal benediction. If the number 
of sick be too great, the cur6s assist the fathers 
in this charitable work. It would be unjust were 
we to conclude without bestowing praise on the 
conduct of the Protestants in general during the 
course of the missions. They not only did not 
interfere with the efforts of the missionaries, but 
on all occasions showed them the greatest respect. 


Appendix. 


213 


Many of them, even some of the municipal au¬ 
thorities, assisted at the principal exercises, and 
expressed great satisfaction, acknowledging that 
the fathers enlightened them without wounding 
their feelings. 

This is a faithful account of the labors of 
the missionaries of the Congregation of the 
Most Holy Redeemer in Holland during the 
last three years. It is certainly not wanting 
in interest to all Catholics who have at heart the 
cause of God and the good of the Church. It will 
furnish hereafter a beautiful page in the history 
of this country; for it must not be forgotten 
that all this has transpired in a Protestant land, 
where Catholics still meet with great opposition 
from a certain party that is anything but tole¬ 
rant. It is true that the missionaries come to the 
parishes without ostentation, and leave in the 
same manner, satisfied with having procured the 
glory of God and the salvation of souls; but we 
must also remark that from the very beginning 
they wore the habit of their order. With the 
mission cross suspended from their necks, and 
the rosary from their cinctures, they exercised 
their laborious ministry, and with truly apostolic 


214 


Appendix. 


freedom preached the truth in all its power. 
What will be the result of these labors? God 
alone knows! In the meantime, let us bless 
the Father of mercies for having bestowed so 
abundantly his blessing on this people; and we 
most ardently desire that still other countries 
may profit by such beautiful examples. 

We cannot omit in concluding to say a word 
in regard to the vicariate of Limburg. Before 
the cession of the territory, the most important 
places of that diocese, such as Ruremonde, Ven- 
loo, etc., had already received the advantage 
of a mission. Since the cession the hotise of 
Wittem has continued its labors there. Two 
jubilees were given at Maestricht; a second 
mission has been given at Venloo, as well as 
at Sittard; other places also received the 
same favor, to which the fathers are ex¬ 
pected soon to return. Those who know the 
well-directed zeal of the Bishop of Hir^ne, 
Mgr. Paredis, also know the good that may 
be expected in the future. 


Appendix. 


215 


E. 

Rev. Fathers Passerat^ De Held.^ and Dechamps. 

In this biographical notice of Father Bernard 
frequent mention has been made of Fathers 
Passerat, De Held, and Dechamps, priests of the 
Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. We 
will devote a few pages to them. 

I. Joseph Passerat, born in 1772, at Joinville 
(Champagne), entered the seminary of ChMons- 
sur-Marne at the breaking out of the Revolu¬ 
tion. Obliged to quit the seminary, and being 
thrown into prison by the republicans, he obtain¬ 
ed his liberty through the influence of some of the 
nobility who interested themselves in his behalf. 
On the entry of the Germans into France he was 
forcibly enrolled into the French army, in which 
he held the position of drum-major and quarter¬ 
master. He effected his escape, and repaired to 
Treves, and from thence to Augsburg and Wurz¬ 
burg, where he devoted himself to the study 
of ecclesiastical sciences. Hearing of the won¬ 
ders accomplished in Poland by the Venerable 


2I6 


Appendix. 


Clement-Maria Hoffbauer, * he resolved to de¬ 
part for Warsaw, where this man of God resided. 
Having been admitted to the novitiate, he pro¬ 
nounced his vows in 1796, and was ordained 
priest the following year. 

The limits of a note do not permit us to de¬ 
scribe in detail the apostolic career of Father 
Passerat. Suffice it to say that the Most Rev. 
Father Mansione, rector-major, appointed him 
vicar-general of the Congregation in the north. 
From that time Father Passerat resided in 
Vienna, at the Convent of ‘‘ Maria-Stiegen.” In 
1848 he resigned his office, and took up his resi¬ 
dence in the convent at Tournay. It was there 
this extraordinary man, so experienced in the in¬ 
terior life, yielded his soul to God, October 30, 
1858, at the age of eighty-six years. He had 
passed nearly sixty-two years in the Congrega¬ 
tion of Saint Alphonsus. 

^'Venerable Clement-Maria Hoffbauer, a native of Moravia, 
died at Vienna in the odor of sanctity, March 15, 1820. See 
notice of him in the work of Cardinal de Villecourt, Vie ei 
Institut de Saint Alphonse-Marie de Liguori (Casterman, Tour- 
nay, 1864), vol. iii.; Appendix to book iv.; and in the 
Memoires sicr la Vie et la Congregation de Saint Alphonse^ by 
Father Tannoya (Gaume, Paris, 1842), vol. iii. page 713 seq. 


Appendix. 


217 


If Father Hoffbauer, says Cardinal Villecourt, 
had received from God the mission of instilling 
into the members of the institute the ardent 
zeal and indefatigable activity of the holy 
founder, Father Passerat may justly be called 
the master of the spiritual life, destined to 
revive more and more, among the Redemptor- 
ists, the spirit of prayer.* 

II. Frederick de Held, son of Michael von 
Held, Chevalier of the Empire, the offspring of a 
noble family of Vienna, was born at Brunn, July 
17, 1799. He was very successful in his studies, 
which he pursued at the University of Vienna, 
where the Very Rev. Father Clement-Maria Hoff¬ 
bauer, vicar-general of the Congregation, resided 
after having been expelled from Warsaw by the 
government. 

Father Hoffbauer formed at Vienna a circle of 
the most distinguished Catholics; among others, 
Frederick de Schlegel, Adam Muller, Frederick 
Henry Schlosser, Zacharias, Frederick Werner, 
and Klinkowstrom.f Some distinguished stu- 

* Vk et Institut de Saint Alphonse, vol. iii. page 375. 
f Frederick de Schlegel founded, in 1811, the Oesterreich- 
ische Beobachfer (the Austrian Observer), in concert wfth 


2I8 


Appendix, 


dents of the university were also admitted. They 
assembled in the evening at the house of the 
venerable religious to discuss religious matters, 
and to consider the stand that Catholics should 
take in opposition to the pretensions of the 
government. Young De Held, being admitted 
into the society of these illustrious men, soon 
formed a friendship with Father Hoffbauer, and 
became one of his most fervent disciples. 

Father Hoffbauer died, as saintly as he had 
lived, March 15, 1820. When, on the 30th of 
April of the same year, the Emperor Francis 
signed a decree granting to the Congregation a 
legal existence in the empire, Frederick de 
Held and other young candidates, already ac¬ 
quainted with the end of the Institute, com¬ 
menced their novitiate under the direction of 
Father Martin Stai'ck.* 

Father de Held had attained the age of twen¬ 
ty-two years when he made his religious profes- 

another Catholic, Anthony de Pilat, a brother of the pious 
Redemptorist of that name. 

*The emperor assigned to the community the beautiful 
church of Maria-Sliegen^ which Father Hoffbauer considered 
suitable for his purpose. 


Appendix. 


21-9 


sion, August 2, 1821. He was promoted to the 
priesthood August 21, 1823. He was destined 
by Providence to contribute in an efficacious 
manner to the propagation of the work of Saint 
Alphonsus, and consequently to the organization 
of spiritual missions in both the city and coun¬ 
try. 

The reader is no doubt aware that Father Jo¬ 
seph Passerat succeeded Father Clement-Maria 
Hoffbauer as superior. It was he who thirteen 
years later (1833) sent Father de Held to Bel¬ 
gium to direct the communities just established 
in the dioceses of Tournay and Li6ge. It is 
no matter of surprise that he won the esteem 
and affection of Mgr. Corneille van Bommel. 
“ Never,” said the pious prelate, “have I met a 
priest of more energy of character or of more 
consummate prudence.” It is, above all, to the 
labors of Father de Held and to the protection 
of the Bishop of Liege that the Congregation 
of the Most Holy Redeemer owes its first or¬ 
ganization in Belgium. 

In 1832 Father de Held repaired to Nocera 
dci Pagani, where reposed the remains of Saint 
Alphonsus de Liguori, to assist at the chapter of 


220 


Appendix, 


the entire Congregation for the election of the 
superior-general. In 1855 he was of the num¬ 
ber of those who received many votes for this 
exalted position. Rev. Father Nicholas Mauron, 
Provincial of France, was elected. 

Father de Held had been rector of the convent 
of Li6ge from the time of its foundation, in 
1833, until 1841, and was at the same time the 
visitor of the Belgian houses. At the erection 
of the Belgian province, July 2, 1841, he was 
appointed provincial. Father Victor Dechamps 
became his successor as rector of the convent 
at Liege^ 

Father de Held filled the office of provincial 
until the close of 1847. Under his prudent 
administration and by his indefatigable zeal the 
Belgian province was enlarged by the founda¬ 
tions in Holland and England, which afterwards 
became separate provinces. 

In 1864 Father de Held had fhe consolation 
of being called to Vienna to assist as witness in 
the process for the beatification of his master in 
the spiritual life, the venerable servant of God, 
Clement-Maria Hoffbauer. 

After having resided at Liege, at Clapham 


Appendix» 


221 


(London), and at Wittem, in the capacity of rec¬ 
tor or provincial, Father de Held was for many 
years attached to the community of Aix-la-Cha- 
pelle ; the religious persecution which has just 
broken out in Germany has obliged this venera¬ 
ble religious, now in his seventy-fifth year, to 
leave his country and taste the bitterness of 
exile. May God preserve him yet many years, 
to be the consolation and the father of the re¬ 
ligious who are now suffering persecution for 
the sake of Jesus Christ ! 

III. Victor Augustus Isidore Dechamps, the 
descendant of a respectable family of Flainault, 
was born at Melle (East Flanders), December 6, 
i8io; he is the third son of Adrian Joseph De¬ 
champs and Alexandrine Josephine de Nuit. 

After having finished his literary and p#hiloso- 
phical studies under the direction of his father, 
who was a distinguished pupil of the old Alma 
Mater, Victor entered the grand s^minaire of 
Tournay, towards the end of October, 1832, in 
order to prepare for the priesthood. In Novem¬ 
ber, 1834, he was sent to Mechlin to continue 
his theological studies at the Catholic University 
then recently erected by the Belgian episcopacy. 


222 


Appendix, 


He was ordained priest at IMechlin, December 20, 
1834, by Mgr. Engelbert Sterckx. Who would 
have thought that on, the same date, December 
20, 1867, he would be appointed by the Holy See 
the immediate successor of him who had ordain¬ 
ed him ? Abbe Dechamps, while yet a student 
in the episcopal seminary of Tournay, learned 
to know and love the Congregation of the Most 
Holy Redeemer; and from that time he felt 
called by heaven to be a missionary. While 
studying at the university he obtained the sanc¬ 
tion of his bishop to leave the ranks of the se¬ 
cular clergy, and was admitted into the family 
of Saint Alphonsus Liguori.* 

Having commenced his novitiate at Saint 
Trond in the autumn of 1835, under the direction 
of Father Villani, he pronounced his religious 
vows June 13, 1836, in the hands of Rev. Father 
de Held. 

From this time until January, 1842, Father 
Victor Dechamps filled in the house of Wittem 

* His eldest brother, Adolphus Dechamps, at present Min¬ 
ister of State, was born in 1806. In the Nouvelle Eve he gives 
an account of his vocation to the ecclesiastical and reli¬ 
gious state. 


Appendix. 


f223 

the office of prefect of studies, and gave lessons 
in Scripture and dogma to his younger brothers 
in religion. In this studious retreat he ripened 
his natural talents, and made his first appear¬ 
ance in the pulpit. 

From 1842 until the close of 1847 we find 
him at the head of the Redemptorist Convent at 
Li6ge. During this interval he took a most ac¬ 
tive part in many missions in small villages of 
the Walloon diocese, and in many large cities 
of the country. From this period he proved to 
be not only one of the most eminent preachers 
of Belgium, but also an able apologist by his 
writings. At the grand jubilee at Li6ge, in 1846, 
he gained great renown. 

In January, 1848, he was named Superior of 
the Convent of Tournay. In this capacity he 
made his first voyage to Italy. Fathers Heilig, 
Hugues, and Dechamps were appointed con- 
sultors-general of the Congregation, and resided 
at Nocera for several months. They defended 
the interests of their order before Ferdinand II., 
King of Naples, who gave them an audience in 
the palace of Caserta. At the royal palace of 
Portici, in the kingdom of Naples, Father De- 


224 Appendix. 

champs had, on several occasions, the signal hap¬ 
piness of prostrating himself at the feet of His 
Holiness Pius IX., and held long communica¬ 
tions with him.* In these interviews, which 
were intimate, the pious and eloquent Belgian 
Redemptorist became a favorite son of the great 
Pope. He afterwards made several pilgrimages 
to Rome for the welfare of the Congregation. 

Father Dechamps had scarcely returned to 
Belgium when he received an invitation to de¬ 
liver the funeral oration of Her Majesty Louise 
Marie Ther^se of Orleans, the first queen of the 
Belgians, who died a holy death October ii, 
1850. On the 24th of the same month the obse¬ 
quies of the queen were magnificently celebrated 
in the Church of Saints Michael and Gudula, at 
Brussels, by Cardinal Sterckx, in the presence of 
the corps de Vdtat. Father Dechamps, who had 
many opportunities of seeing and admiring the 
pious and charitable daughter of Louis Philippe 

* Pius IX., having sought an asylum in Gaeta in No¬ 
vember, 1848, went to Portici on the 4th of September, 1849, 
where he remained about seven months. He triumphantly 
returned to his capital April 12, 1850, which had been de¬ 
livered by the French army, July 3, 1849. 


Appendix, 


225 


and Marie Amdlie, pronounced a touching dis¬ 
course, of which even the first words deeply affect¬ 
ed the audience. This masterpiece of Christian 
eloquence was reproduced by the entire press, 
and obtained lasting applause throughout Europe. 

In 1851 Father Dechamps succeeded the Very 
Rev. Father Heilig as Provincial of Belgium. 
Freed, after three years, from the laborious 
duties which are inseparable from the office of 
provincial, he was called to resume the rector¬ 
ship of Tournay. 

He passed a great part of the year 1855 in the 
capital of the Christian world. He acted there 
as vocalj elected by the Chapter of the Province 
of Belgium to the General Chapter of the Insti¬ 
tute of St. Alphonsus. 

From the close of 1855 until the commence¬ 
ment of 1859 resided in the Convent of St. 
Joseph at Brussels, in the capacity of rector. At 
his request he was relieved of all direction of 
the convent, and devoted himself exclusively to 
preaching, to the direction of souls, and to the 
completion of his great apologetical Avritings. 
Father Dechamps seemed exhausted by the la¬ 
bors of the cell and those of the holy ministry. 


226 


Appendix, 


but no repose was given him. His vast learning, 
added to an incomparable zeal for the salvation/ 
of souls, opened to him against his will the 
path to another kind of apostolate. 

Mgr. Nicolas Joseph Dehesselle, Bishop of 
Namur, having been suddenly taken from his 
flock, on the 15th of August, 1865, Father De¬ 
champs was called to Rome and presented to 
Pius IX., who had already for some years fixed 
his eyes upon him. Preconized for the vacant 
see in the secret consistory of September 25, 
1865, he received on the first of the following 
month the episcopal character by the imposi¬ 
tion of the hands of his Eminence Cardinal de 
Reisach, assisted by Mgr. Joseph Berardi, Arch¬ 
bishop of Nicea in partibus^ and Mgr. Henry 
Edward Manning, Archbishop of Westminster. 
The ceremony of consecration took place in the 
Church of the Redemptorists in Rome. Ten 
days after the new bishop pronounced, in the 
Cathedral of Frascati, the funeral oration of his 
spiritual son, General Lamorici^re, who died on 
the eleventh of the preceding month. He had 
been the instrument chosen by God to make 
this illustrious warrior a true Christian, and to 


Appendix 


227 


cause him to devote his sword to the defence of 
the Papacy. Mgr. Victor Augustus Dechamps 
took canonical possession of the bishopric of 
Namur October 25, and was personally installed 
in his cathedral on the 12th of November, to 
commence a new life of apostolic work and 
sacrifice. He chose for his coat of arms the 
image of Our Lady of Good Counsel, in which 
Saint Alphonsus had great confidence, and for 
armorial motto the invocation of the Church : 
Pervia coeli porta manesf^ 

In 1867 his Lordship the Bishop of Namur 
returned to the Eternal City to assist with his 
venerable colleagues at the eighteenth centenary 
of the martyrdom of Saint Peter, and at the 
canonization of the martyrs of Gorcum. 

In a consistory held December 20th of the same 
year he was preconized to the metropolitan and 
primatial see of Mechlin, which Cardinal Sterckx, 
his intimate friend, had governed and rendered 
illustrious for more than thirty-five years. On 
December 31 he took possession of his new see 
through Mgr. J. B. Lauwers, the oldest of the 

* The motive of this choice is sufficiently indicated in 
chapter xxiv. of the Nouvelle Eve. 


228 


Appendix. 


three vicars-general, and made his solemn en¬ 
trance into the city and Church of Saint Rom- 
baut January 28, 1868. 

Propriety requires us to say no more. In the 
exalted position that Mgr. Dechamps has oc¬ 
cupied for six years he remains, what he was 
before he was raised to this dignity, a Redemp- 
torist in heart and soul. May heaven grant to 
the Primate of Belgium an episcopacy that will 
surpass in duration that of his eminent prede¬ 
cessor, for the good of the diocese, the country, 
and the entire Church ! 


F. 

Letter of the Rev. Father de Held^ Provmcial of 
Belgium^ to the Rev. Father Victor De champs^ 
Rector of the Redemptorist Convent hi LRge 
{Page 105). 

On Board the “Hibernia,” 
April 28, 1845. 

Reverend and dear Father Rector ; 
This is the tenth day of our voyage. It would 
fill a little journal were I to note down all that 


Appendix. 


229 


has happened until now. But I desire to send 
you news without delay. After having sustained 
a furious temp’est, we now hope to arrive at 
Halifax (a place belonging to the English, a 
voyage of thirty hours from Boston) in three 
or four days. We will there mail our letters 
for Europe; they will leave Halifax May 3, 
and thus I hope you will receive news from us 
about the middle of the same month. Father 
Kaltenbach will have received my letter from 
Hanley. 

Our voyage to Liverpool was prosperous. I 
found all those persons to whom I desired to 
speak. We met our travelling companions there, 
and on Saturday, the 19th of April, at half-past 
four o’clock in the evening, we left the harbor 
for the New World. During the first days of our 
voyage, and even until the close of the past 
week, we had favorable weather. 

Besides the dangers attendant on all sea- 
voyages, we have met with one peculiar to 
steamships: that of being burned in the middle 
of the ocean. On Monday, the 21st inst., 
while at supper, at about eight o’clock in the 
evening, a fire broke out in the kitchen. It was 


230 


Appendix, 


an hour and a half before we could master it; 
three times we believed it extinguished, and as 
often did it break out again with renewed vio¬ 
lence. We finally conquered it, and could re¬ 
turn thanks to Divine Providence and to the 
Blessed Virgin for having delivered us from the 
first danger. It was great enough to give us 
an opportunity of making an offering of our 
lives to our Heavenly Father. 

During Friday night there arose a tempest 
that lasted until Monday morning, and placed 
us in new dangers. This danger may perhaps 
have appeared greater to us, because of our in¬ 
experience in sea-voyages, than to those who are 
more accustomed to them. However, one can¬ 
not describe such things but according to the 
impressions made upon him. I will, then, re¬ 
late our perils as I felt them. 

Tuesday, April 29, 1845, i o’clock. 

My narration was interrupted yesterday, and 
now that I resume, we are in the midst of still 
greater dangers. We are surrounded by moun¬ 
tains of ice, and in such a manner that nothing 
but a miracle can save us. We have to-day 


Appendix. 


231 


prepared ourselves for death, and made our con¬ 
fessions as if for the last time. 

I resume the recital where I left off yester¬ 
day. As regards the time of the tempest, it 
was most terrible during the night of Saturday. 
I did not close my eyes. The violent and ir¬ 
regular motion of the ship, the howling of the 
winds, the continual creaking of the vessel, which 
seemed ready to be rent asunder at every lash of 
the waves—all this so forcibly affected the feel¬ 
ings and the imagination that at every instant 
we believed we would be buried in the deep. 
I passed this night also in prayer, making acts 
of resignation, and recommending my soul to 
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, to Saint Alphonsus 
and all the saints. 

The morning, with the exception of the dark¬ 
ness, had lost nothing of the horrors of the 
night. As during the night, at every moment 
the waves fell with the greatest violence on the 
vessel, entering the cabins by various ways. I 
always considered a sea-voyage as something 
full of dangers; but the reality far surpasses the 
idea that one may form of it. Under such cir¬ 
cumstances the advantage of steamships over 


232 Appendix. 

sailing-vessels is evinced by the fact that, in 
spite of the weather, they always make head¬ 
way, though it be ever so little. In the worst 
weather we advanced three miles—that is to say, 
a good league—in an hour. 

During the night of Saturday we met with 
another danger, of which we knew nothing until 
the next day. 

Between midnight and one o’clock the rudder- 
chain broke, and for more than an hour we were 
drifting about without rudder, at the mercy of 
wind and wave. It is under such circumstan¬ 
ces that the English sailor is to be admired ; 
he loses neither presence of mind nor calmness 
in the midst of the most imminent dangers. 
For this reason many will not risk the perils 
of the ocean on ships not manned by English 
sailors. We had many opportunities of acknow¬ 
ledging the great civility and kindness of the 
entire crew of the Hibernia. 

Tuesday, 9 p.m. 

I know not whether you will receive this letter 
or not, but I will continue in the hope that 
Divine Providence and the Blessed Virgin will 
save us. For several hours we have been sur- 


Appendix. 


233 


rounded by icebergs, and, in order not to cause 
further damage to the wheels, already in a bad 
condition, we made no progress during the night. 
Notwithstanding the assurances of the captain 
that he has escaped greater dangers, our posi¬ 
tion is very perilous. Father Bayer, who has 
made the- voyage several times, says that a 
miracle alone will save us. He also made his 
confession, as if for the last time. 

It seems that, notwithstanding the courage 
that all endeavor to assume by eating, laughing, 
and amusing themselves, they all really share our 
anxiety; for the discovery of a ship, seen in the 
distance, about eight o’clock in the evening, con¬ 
trary to all expectation, filled every one with 
joy. This vessel belonged to men in search of 
seal. They sent lis a large boat, warning us 
that there was much ice in the direction we had 
taken, bu^ gave us hopes that towards mid¬ 
night we would find the sea less obstructed. 
These men liave advised us to wait until morn¬ 
ing, when they will conduct us through the ice. 
Good-night, then, until the morning, if we be 
alive. 

N.B.—Here it is half-past nine o’clock at 


234 Appendix. 

night; with you it is one o’clock in the 
morning 

Wednesday, April 30, a.m. 

We are still in the ice. We have profited 
by the delay to repair the damage done to the 
vessel, and to make an ice-breaker to be attach¬ 
ed to our ship. The sealers whom we met last 
night came on board this morning, and acted 
as our pilots. They are brave Irish Catholics, 
sent by the Blessed Virgin in order to save us, if 
we are to be saved. The captain is very well sat¬ 
isfied to avail himself of the assistance of these 
brave men, whose boat we have taken in tow. 
It is a frightful thing to find ourselves surround¬ 
ed on all sides by these great mountains of ice, 
on which the fishermen pursue the seal that 
crouch here and there upon them. We continue 
to pray and to be resigned to the fate which 
Divine Providence has in store for irs. 

Wednesday, 9 o’clock p.m. 

We continued our journey in the midst of the 
ice until seven o’clock in the evening, when 
the* captain stopped the engine, in order not 
to expose the machinery, and, above all. the 


Appendix. 


235 


wheels, that have already been damaged. Those 
who have frequently made this voyage do not 
recollect ever to have encountered such a 
quantity of ice. They say that this winter, 

which has been so rigorous in Europe, has 

# 

been extremely mild in the northern seas, 
where the thaw commenced in the month 
of January. Every one recognized an especial 
mark of the favor of Providence in the arri¬ 
val of the Newfoundland fishermen. Their 
captain remained for an entire day exposed 
to the bitter frost on the top of the ship’s 
ladder, and guided us through the icebergs 
with astonishing intrepidity and certainty. 
We had already taken up a subscription for 
the purpose of securing their services as far 
as Halifax, when suddenly a difficulty arose 
between our captain and pilot, to the great 
regret of all the passengers, some of whom 
had offered them from two hundred to two 
hundred and fifty francs if they would con¬ 
duct us to Halifax; but our rescuers left us, 
and here we are floating about on the ocean 
during the night, and surrounded by ice. It 
seems, however, that we have passed the great- 


236 


Appe 7 idix, 


est dangers. We confide in the Blessed Virgin, 
whose beautiful month commences to-morrow ; 
unfortunately for us, it is not very agreeable to 
begin the month of May in the midst of seal- 
hunts. Good-night. With you it is now one 
o’clock in the morning. As for myself, I am 
going on deck to pray before retiring for the 
night. 


May I, Feast of the Ascension, 

I o’clock p.m. 

With you it will soon be five o’clock; you 
are preaching at Notre Dame. 

To-day, the first day of the month of May, to¬ 
wards eleven o’clock, we passed the last iceberg. 
It was frightful to behold. When we arose, the 
sun was shining brightly, but the weather was 
very cold, and we found ourselves surrounded by 
as much ice as ever. Those who have made the 
voyage twenty times never witnessed such a 
sight. We advanced very slowly, and, to all 
appearances, there was no hope of being speedily 
relieved from our precarious position. Every one, 
even the officers, appeared quite dejected. Great, 
then, was the joy of all when towards eleven 


Appendix. 


237 


o’clock we found ourselves beyond the ice, and 
the sea free and calm. The moment we passed 
this last iceberg was truly grand and imposing, 
especially when, for the first time in the fifty- 
three hours that we passed in the ice, the cap¬ 
tain cried out: '‘'‘Full steam!'' Are we now at 
the end of our trials? God alone knows. We 
hope; and Father Bayer continues to say that it 
is by miracle we have escaped these perils. 

Friday, May 2. 

We finally escaped from the icebergs yes¬ 
terday, and we joyfully continued our journey 
with great swiftness. It was, however, necessary 
to take a more southern course than we had in¬ 
tended, so as not to be impeded again by the 
troublesome icebergs. From time to time we 
still meet them, as high as mountains. They seem 
to be firm in the sea. During the day, when we 
are out of danger, they are magnificent to be¬ 
hold ; but it is a different thing at night, because 
of the extreme rashness of our captain. We 
were sailing with great rapidity, the fog not per¬ 
mitting us to distinguish anything, when sud¬ 
denly we found ourselves in front of one of these 


238 


Appendix. 


frightful mountains. We barely avoided a col¬ 
lision, which would have inevitably crushed us 
in the twinkling of an eye. The ship did not 
escape without damage. Again we must cry 
out: Misericordice Domini^ quia 7 ion suinus con- 
siimpti. Last evening, while walking on deck, I 
thought of this danger, and made the Way of 
the Cross for having been preserved. 

It is hardly probable that I can send you this 
letter as soon as I expected. It is particularly 
on the sea that we can say: Homo proponit^ 
Deus disporiit. 

In the midst of so many dangers one is pain¬ 
fully affected by the thought of being among 
Protestants, who have not the gift of prayer; all 
they do is to read some passages of the Bible, 
many copies of which are found in the library 
of the ship. 

Thanks be to God, we arrived at Halifax yes¬ 
terday, and offered there the first Mass of 
thanksgiving. Although it was already two 
o’clock in the afternoon, I was very happy to be 
able to offer the Holy Sacrifice. We are now on 
our way to Boston, where we hope to arrive to¬ 
morrow morning. We will celebrate holy Mass 


Appejidix, 


239 

there, and remain till Wednesday, when we will 
go by rail to New York. 

If Very Rev. Father Vicar-General is with 
you, kiss his hand for me. 

Remember me to all my dear confreres; my 
travelling companions desire the same kind re¬ 
membrance. Continue to pray for us, and par¬ 
ticularly for your devoted brother in Jesus 
Christ, 

Fr. de Held, C.SS.R. 

P. S.—Kind regards to our friends and ac¬ 
quaintances. 


Letter of Rev, Father Gillet to the Very Rev, 
Father de Held, 

Monroe, April 13, 1845. 
Very Rev. Father Provincial: It is 
always with the greatest joy that I receive 
news from Belgium, and above all from your 
reverence. I received your last letter in August, 
on my return from the long journey I had made 
to Baltimore to regulate affairs with Father 
Alexander concerning our new French founda¬ 
tion. I am glad to hear that you approve of my 


240 


Appendix. 


enterprise, and I count on your reverence to 
support it ; for it must contribute greatly to the 
glory of God in a country where are found so 
many abandoned souls, deprived of all the aids 
of religion. In selecting the little city of Monroe 
for our establishment I had in view to make it 
the centre of the mission, from whence our 
fathers can go to different parts of the large 
State of Michigan, and even beyond it, to give 
regular missions and to repeat those already 
given. We have been more than a year at 
Monroe. My companions at present are Father 
Poilvache, two candidate lay brothers, and an 
Irish student of theology. Our church, which is 
Gothic, is 100 feet long and 50 feet wide, with a 
tower 100 feet high; but as it is too small to 
accommodate the faithful, we have commenced 
the work of adding a sanctuary of twenty-eight 
feet. At the back of the church I have laid the 
foundation of a brick convent, which will be 
thirty-five feet wide and seventy long. I hope 
to complete the work this year. Our parish at 
Monroe is composed of French Canadians, Irish, 
and Germans. Besides the parish, properly so 
called, nine stations, constituting part of the 


Appendix. 


241 


parish, are attended by us, seven of which are 
composed entirely of Irish. Judge by this 
whether I stand in want of a fast horse. I will 
soon have served an apprenticeship in the art of 
riding. Being forced to speak English, I have 
succeeded pretty well, so that now I frequently 
preach in that language. Father Poilvache 
usually attends the parish and the P'rench mis¬ 
sions. As to missions which are called for from 
all parts, I have been obliged to refuse them 
until the arrival of other fathers. My furthest 
station from here is about sixty miles. We 
therefore sometimes carry the Holy Viaticum 
to the sick to the distance of sixty miles from 
Monroe. An immense field is open in this 
country to the sons of Saint Alphonsus. 
The good that has already been performed by 
the grace of God is incalculable; but who 
can measure all that is yet to be done ? 
How many missions demanded! How many 
French Congregations yet deprived of priests, 
and for how long a time! I desire to be every¬ 
where when I think of so many needs. Often, in 
casting my eyes on Europe, and particularly on 
Belgium, I cannot but be astonished to see 


242 


Appendix. 


among so many priests so few who dream of the 
vast field that lies open here to their zeal. The 
Catholic religion has spread particularly in Mon¬ 
roe ; many Protestants have already made their 
abjuration, and I have about a dozen more who 
are under instruction! Catholics by becoming 
temperate have at the same time become fer¬ 
vent. To renounce spirituous liquors is the chief 
point; thus I insist upon it, and unceasingly 
preach temperance from a conviction that it is 
the first step for a Canadian towards becom¬ 
ing a good Catholic. During the past year 
and a half I have given the pledge—that is to 
say, received the promise of temperance—to 
four thousand Canadians, who are divided into 
seven societies. That of Monroe numbers one 
thousand two hundred members. This society 
is established in the manner of a confraternity, 
having monthly meetings and a rule approved 
by Mgr. Lefevre, Bishop of Detroit. Such, Veiy 
Rev. Father, in a few words, is the result of our 
labors. God has visibly blessed them, and has 
made use of weak instruments like ourselves to 
recall so many abandoned souls to the practice 
of their religion. All bless our Lord for the 


Appendix, 


243 


happy change effected among the French. Even 
the Protestants are astonished, and more than 
once they have borne witness to the truth in 
their journals, and acknowledged their inability 
to effect like results. I alone complain in seeing 
fall upon me the cares of this new foundation, 
the fatigues, of so many stations, and, above all, 
those for the Irish, I am always sustained by the 
hope that you will not abandon me, and that 
you will lighten the burden that has been laid 
upon my shoulders in placing me at the head 
of this mission. 

Send me, if you please, a good father to take 
charge of the mission, and, above all, some zeal¬ 
ous missionaries. As for health, there is nothing 
to fear; no one was more feeble thart myself in 
this respect, and now, with the Canadian fare, 
frugal as it is, I am able to sustain alone the fa¬ 
tigues of an entire mission, preaching two or 
three times a day. Why have I not here some 
confreres from Li6ge ? Have the goodness to 

thank M- K-for me for his kindness in 

sending me his journal, which I receive regularly. 

My regards to all my confreres at Li6ge, etc. 
Father Louis Gillet, C.SS.R. 




244 


Appendix, 


G. 

Notice of Father Poilvache^ by Rev. F. Gillet 
{Page I lo). 

February 12, 1848. 

My dear Friend : I have j’ust received the 
letter in which you inform me of the sad and 
afflicting news of the death, as sudden as it was 
premature, of Rev. Father Poilvache, a priest of 
the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, 
who died at Monroe, Michigan, on the night of 
the 26th of January last, after an illness of from 
ten to twelve hours. 

For twenty years a faithful witness of the vir¬ 
tues of the deceased, a companion of his early 
youth and of his studies, as well as of his apos¬ 
tolic career, I have been able to appreciate the 
purity of his zeal, the goodness of his heart, and 
the heroism of his virtues. It would also have 
been a sweet consolation for me to be present at 
his last hour; but God has otherwise ordained. 
Voluntarily exiled for the love of Jesus Christ, 
he died in a foreign land, many thousand miles 
from his country, leaving to his parents and hisx 
friends no other inheritance than his lessons of 


Appendix. 245 

virtue, and of himself no other remembrance 
than his name. It is not so much to contribute 
something to his memory as to console his many 
friends, and to render our dear deceased a last 
tribute of attachment, that I transmit you this 
short biographical notice of Father Poilvache, 
who is at present mourned not only by the 
Catholic Congregation of Monroe, but by all 
Catholics of Michigan. 

Francis Poilvache was born May 12, 1812, in 
the village of Eben-Emael, in the Diocese of 
Liege, in Belgium. His estimable parents are 
still living. They are in easy circumstances, and 
enjoy in their country a great reputation for vir¬ 
tue and probity. Young Francis commenced 
early in life his studies at the Royal College of 
Liege, and completed them under the guidance 
of pious and learned masters in the petit semi- 
naire at Li6ge, established in the ancient Abbey 
of Rolduc. It was in this happy asylum of vir¬ 
tue and piety that his vocation to the religious 
state, as well as mine, was formed and matured, 
and on the 9th of September, 1834, he entered 
as novice the Redemptorist Convent at Saint 
Trond. He was then twenty-two years of age. 


246 


Appcndix. 


The year of his novitiate being finished, he was 
admitted to the religious profession of the per¬ 
petual vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. 
As he had been in the world a model of regu¬ 
larity, he was in religion a constant example of 
a true religious. His ill-health, which did not 
permit him to apply his mind, delayed for some 
years his theological studies, and he was not or¬ 
dained priest until July 3, 1842. From that time 
he exercised the holy ministry in Belgium with a 
zeal and devotedness that caused his departure 
to be deeply regretted. 

He had for a long time ardently desired to go 
to America. His zeal and his charity kept his 
mind constantly turned to these distant regions, 
and particularly after he had heard that beyond 
the ocean, in a remote corner of America, in 
Michigan, there was a certain number of poor 
Catholics, speaking the language of his countr}^, 
who, on account of the scarcity of priests, were 
deprived of the consolations of religion. Con¬ 
tinually haunted by this thought, he solicited for 
two years the permission of his superiors to de¬ 
vote himself to the salvation of these abandoned 
souls. His generous offer, so long tried, was 


Appendix, 


247 


finally accepted ; and three hours after having 
received the news he was on his way to America. 
After a voyage of thirty days he landed on the 
hospitable shores of America, which became his 
new country and his grave. He was at first sent 
to Rochester, where he was charged with the 
care of a French and German Congregation ; 
some rnonths afterwards he received orders to go 
to Michigan, which was to be the theatre of his 
zeal and the place of his repose. It was there 
he worked for nearly four years with a zeal and a 
devotion truly worthy of an* apostle of Jesus 
Christ, and which rendered his name dear to all 
who knew him. His courage never wavered, his 
zeal never relaxed, when he was called to any 
place to exercise his ministry. How often, when 
sick himself, did he not leave his bed at night 
to carry to others the consolations of religion, 
frequently travelling great distances, fearing not 
to expose himself to the scorching sun of summer 
or to the cold winds of winter! The children, 
th6 poor, the afflicted, the sick, all experienced 
the effects of his constant charity. His zeal and 
devotedness were not confined to the limits of 
Monroe. Oh! how many evangelized and fer- 


248 


Appeiidix. 


vent parishes are indebted to him, after God, for 
the happy change of which Michigan is to-day the 
witness. How many families, how many indivi¬ 
duals, owe to him the peace and serenity that 
they enjoy since their return to religion ! It was 
above all in our great missions that Father Poil- 
vache knew how to manifest the resources of 
his apostolic zeal, and the unalterable sweet¬ 
ness of his character enabled him to subdue 
the most obdurate hearts. It was then that, en¬ 
tirely forgetful of himself, he appeared no longer 
the weak and suffering man, but the indefati¬ 
gable apostle, whose only hunger and thirst was 
the salvation of souls. On these occasions he 
knew how to throw off, as it were, his habitual 
infirmities, in order to clothe himself alone with 
the strength of Jesus Christ. Such, in a few 
words, was the public life of Father Poilvache. 
God alone was witness of the many acts of in¬ 
terior virtue which were practised by this man 
of God and true religious. 

So many arduous- labors could not fail to 
destroy a constitution which had always been 
weak and failing, particularly from the time he 
had charge of the French Congregations. For a 


Appendix. 


249 


long while Father Francis had felt his strength 
sensibly diminishing, and was not deceived with 
regard to his approaching death; much less did 
he fear it. His last words, on my parting with 
him on the 14th of November last, and to which 
I did not then pay attention, have proved but 
too true. ‘‘ Adieu,” he said to me ; “ in four 
months I will no longer be of this world.” 

Father Francis was the first priest of the Con¬ 
gregation of the Most Holy Redeemer who died 
in America. Without doubt he has gone to a 
better world to receive the reward of his labors 
and sacrifices. He left to his brothers in re¬ 
ligion, as an inheritance and consolation, the 
remembrance of his virtues and example ; to his 
parents, who are still ignorant of their loss, the 
consolation of having given an apostle to Michi¬ 
gan ; to his friends, to the Congregation of Mon¬ 
roe, and to the French of Michigan, the lessons 
of salvation that he never failed to teach them, 
both by word and example. 

Such will be the most lasting and most glori¬ 
ous monument that can be raised to the memory 
of this apostolic man; and the pious remem¬ 
brance of Father Francis, engraven in the hearts 


250 


Appendix. 


of the French Canadians, will be the living 
epitaph that time will not efface. 

Father Louis Gillet. 

H. 

Mission at Heike^t {Page in). 

There is a heath in Holland remarkable for 
its position, for the character of its inhabitants, 
and the events of which it has been the theatre. 
It is the litde heath of Heiken, situated between 
the marquisate of .Berg-op-Zoom and the barony 
of Breda. As it was in evil repute for many 
years, on account of the highwaymen and 
.thieves that it secreted in its caves, neither of 
the two lords of these districts recognized it as 
part of his domain. The French, having become 
masters of the Netherlands, tried in vain to 
conquer this half-savage people. Napoleon him¬ 
self could effect nothing in the change of its 
morals by having the most guilty leaders exe¬ 
cuted without mercy. Only twenty years ago 
(1845) the. authorities sent thither a military 
body to inspire terror, with orders to inflict sum- 


Appendix, 


251 


mary punishment on the most guilty. It was 
an uncommon thing for one of them to die in 
his bed; they ended their days either on the 
scaffold or in chains, or they killed one another 
in riots. Such was the condition of this fero¬ 
cious people until 1830. The troops that were 
encamped in the vicinity only rendered the 
heath the more notorious for its houses of de¬ 
bauchery, nightly dances, and bloody conflicts, to 
which they abandoned themselves with impu¬ 
nity. This vicious people, so prone to evil, 
preserved in their hearts a faith that was truly 
astonishing. All baptized and Catholics, it 
seemed that their isolated condition was the 
principal cause of their ignorance and demorali¬ 
zation. The pious bishop in partibus, Mgr. J. Van 
Hooydonck, administrator of the vicariate of' 
% Breda, bewailed this state of affairs, and sought 
means to remedy it. After having overcome 
many difficulties, he had a church built there in 
1840, which was dedicated to Saint Willibrord. 
whose name the village now bears. At the 
side of the church a residence was built for the 
pastor, and a house for the religious charged with 
the education of young girls. An exemplary 


Appendix. 


25:2 

priest, M. Koes, whose zeal is sufficiently- 
known, offered himself to take charge of this 
flock, deprived of a shepherd. Thus was the 
new parish formed, that reckons to day 425 
communicants. The government, on its part, 
full of admiration for this beautiful work, second¬ 
ed the efforts of the bishop, and supported at 
its expense a Catholic school-teacher. But this 
was not sufficient. It was necessary to supply 
these poor people with work to raise them to 
the rank of honest citizens ; for this purpose 
an association of wealthy and pious men was 
formed, who assumed the responsibility of giv¬ 
ing them employment and of assisting them 
in their work. 

Religion alone could accomplish the civiliza¬ 
tion of these poor people. The good cure left 
nothing untried to instruct them in their duties# 
and to reform their morals. After some time, 
finding that his zeal met with little success, he 
thought of calling on the missionaries to assist 
him in finishing his work. The mission was 
consequently asked for, and was opened on the 
8th of February (1845) by Father Bernard, ac¬ 
companied by Father Janson. It is impossible 


Appendix, 


253 


to describe the joy of these people, their desire 
to hear the Word of God, and the eagerness 
with which they embraced the exercises of 
piety authorized by the Church. The Way 
of the Cross, the beads, the scapular, all 
had a singular attraction for these hearts, un¬ 
til then so hard and insensible. All without 
exception approached the Sacrament of Pen¬ 
ance ; and there was not a family, even of 
the saddest celebrity in the judiciary annals, 
that did not attend the mission. One per¬ 
son alone resisted to the end, notwithstanding 
the exhortations of his friends, and even of 
the missionaries, who called to see him. The 
honor of this conquest was reserved to Mary. 
In the farewell sermon, when the audience 
was moved to tears, the preacher expressed 
bitter regret at not having been able to recall 
this strayed sheep to the fold; he then re¬ 
commended him to Mary, and requested the 
audience to pray for him. The next day he 
too joined the faithful flock. 

The last day of the mission Mgr. Van Hooy- 
donck, accompanied by his worthy secretary, was 
received by these good people with demonstra- 


254 


Appendix. 


tions of the most lively joy and the most sincere 
gratitude. After a touching address he adminis¬ 
tered the Sacrament of Confirmation to the chil¬ 
dren of both sexes and to several adults. Solemn 
High Mass was celebrated on the following day for 
the deceased of the parish, and the missionaries 
carried to the sick the consolations of religion. 

Thus was terminated this interesting mission, 
which so forcibly recalls to our minds the one 
given by Saint Alphonsus de Liguori to the 
herdsmen, or to the inhabitants of Calabria. It 
was everywhere applauded ; and there is every 
reason to hope that, by the solicitude of the pious 
prelate and the zeal of the good cur6, the fruits 
will be lasting. An association for the extirpa¬ 
tion of blasphemy, in which all the men were en¬ 
rolled, was solemnly established; also a Sunday- 
school for boys and girls, and a society in honor 
of Saint Aloysius de Gonzaga. With such means 
of perseverance, who would not nourish the 
sweetest hopes for the prosperity of the new 
parish of Saint Willibrord, both in a civil as well 
as in a religious respect? But, above all, who 
can fail to admire here the divinity of a religion 
which effected in so short a time what human 


Appendix, 


255 


power and the rigor of the laws had not been 
able to accomplish ? * 


I. 

A Few Observations Relative to the Work of the 
Missions. 

Saint Alphonsus ranks among the most signal 
benefits of Divine Providence that of having 
willed to institute in a depraved age the effica¬ 
cious means of missions for the salvation of 
souls. “ Missions,”*says the great doctor, “are 
the support of the Church; the principal, if not 
the only, means to preserve the faith, and to 
establish it solidly on the rock which is Jesus 
Christ.” 

Experience confirms these words of Saint Al¬ 
phonsus. The wonderful success that his chil¬ 
dren have obtained by the work of the missions 
proves the truth of the remark. But this success 
must be attributed, after the grace of God, to 
the method adopted by the Recf^mptorists in 
their missions—a method bequeathed to them 

* Taken from the Journal Historique de M. Kersten, vol. 
xii. page 19. 


256 Appendix. 

by their holy founder. We will examine the 
exercises in detail. 

I. Sermons .—The powerful effect of the mission 
sermons on the audience is principally owing 
to the subjects of which the missionaries treat. 
Missions having for their object the conversion 
of souls, and the common people forming the 
great majority of the hearers, both in cities and 
in the country, the Redemptorists do not treat 
on these occasions of purely speculative matters. 
They instruct the people in the principal points 
of Catholic belief—the end of man, the immor¬ 
tality of the soul, the torments of hell, the 
Church, its authority, its priesthood, its sacra¬ 
ments, and particularly those of penance and. the 
Eucharist. These subjects are adapted to the 
capacity of all, and always have a practical end 
in view. The greater part of the sermons have 
for their object the reformation of morals, the 
commandments of God and of the Church, sin, 
the passions^ the occasions of sin, and the means 
of sanctification. 

The sermons thus comprise a collection of 
truths which make a decided impression on souls, 
and gain them to Jesus Christ. First in order 


Appe7idix, 


257 


are the great truths of faith—the last end of man, 
sin, death, judgment, and hell—truths so well 
calculated to arouse the indifferent. Resting on 
this foundation, which they never abandon, and 
which they continually recall to the minds of 
their hearers, they attack the passions, the abuses 
that prevail in the locality where the mission 
is given, such as blasphemy, intemperance, in¬ 
justice, impurity, profanation of Sundays and 
holydays, immoral reading, bad company, im¬ 
proper amusements, human respect, etc., etc. 
Then follow the general and particular duties of 
the Christian life. The last days of the mission 
are devoted to the means of sanctification, as 
prayer, frequentation of the sacraments, devo¬ 
tion to the Blessed Virgin—in a word, to all 
those practices 'suitable to form souls to piety 
and to preserve them in virtue. 

Not satisfied with adapting their sermons to 
the wants of the people in general, the Re- 
demptorists give instructions to the particular 
classes. They give instructions to the married 
men and women, to the young men and young 
women, to parents—for they never fail to treat 
of the important question of the family, as 


258 


Appendix, 


the education of children, etc.—and also to 
masters and servants. The fathers also give 
particular instructions to the children, who can¬ 
not follow with fruit the general exercises of 
the missions. This method, which places the 
fathers in a most intimate relation with the en¬ 
tire peopfe, serves to make them more popular. 
The people are delighted at seeing them so solici¬ 
tous about their welfare; but the great effect of 
this method consists in causing the truths of faith 
and the moral law to penetrate deeper into souls 
and to ensure the success of - the mission. The 
Redemptorists adopt a simple style in their ser¬ 
mons. Like their holy founder, they desire that 
their discourses be understood by their hearers. 
It is precisely this simplicity which pleases the 
people, and attracts them to the mission ser¬ 
mons ; they are delighted with a language which 
they understand, and which makes the truth 
clear to them. Are we not, like the apostles, 
debtors to all? Do not the common people 
form the great majority in the cities as well as 
in the country ? Are the higher classes of so¬ 
ciety more enlightened in religion ? Does not 
experience daily prove that lofty speculations 


Appendix. 


259 


and polished sermons are unintelligible to the 
greater part even of those persons whom one is 
pleased to call the intelligent class, but to which 
ought to be applied these words : Homo animalis 
qui non inteliigit quce Dei sunt ? Such sermons 
leave them in their religious indifference, while 
popular sermons, the merit of which lies in 
their solidity and clearness, in their noble sim¬ 
plicity of style, and in that ardent zeal which 
springs from the love of souls, convert them, 
provided they be of good-will. 

II. Prayer .—Prayer recited aloud by the 
whole congregation in the church and during 
processions is a distinctive mark of the Redemp- 
torist missions. “ Prayer is the great weapon of 
salvation,” says Saint Alphonsus; serrnons are 
fruitless to a soul that does not pray.” In mis¬ 
sions given by the Redemptorist fathers the 
people are forced, as it were, to pray, in spite of 
themselves; even the men join in this public 
prayer. After the mission the custom of praying 
privately and in common, at their homes or in 
the church, is preserved. We could relate many 
instances where family prayers were unknown in 
parishes before the mission, but were found in 


26 o 


Appendix. 


practice many years after the mission had been 
given. In many parishes the cures did not at¬ 
tempt to have prayers said aloud in church, or, 
if it was attempted, the voices of the children 
alone were heard ; but after the mission the 
people willingly prayed aloud with the priest. 

The beads are usually recited by the fathers 
before the sermon and during the processions; 
for is not Mary the channel of all graces? In 
many parishes the recitation of the beads in 
public or in private has become a custom since 
the mission. 

III. Chant and Ceremonies .—The singing of 
hymns by the people, and the ceremonies, are 
important features in missions given by the 
Redemptorist Fathers, and render them truly 
popular. 

Every evening, before the sermon and during 
the procession, the people sing hymns. The 
principal ceremonies are: The act of atonement 
made to Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament 
in reparation for sin ; the consecration to the 
Blessed Virgin after the sermon on the goodness 
and power of Mary—a sermon which Saint Al- 
phonsus.made of precept, and to which is justly 


A ppeudix. 


261 


attributed a particular efficacy for the conversion 
of souls ; the procession, and the erection of the 
cross ; the solemn exercise of the Way of the 
Cross ; the blessing of the children ; the renewal 
of baptismal vows ; the public reception of the 
scapular ; the solemn blessing of beads and other 
pious objects; the blessing of fields ; and, lastly, 
the Papal Benediction, given after the closing 
sermon. These ceremonies are conducted with 
all possible solemnity, especially the act of atone¬ 
ment, the consecration to the Blessed Virgin, 
and the Papal Benediction, which are always ac¬ 
companied by a magnificent illumination. During 
these ceremonies the altars are beautifully de¬ 
corated ; the wax candles which are used are 
supplied at the expense of the congregation. 
Why all these ceremonies ? some may ask ; we see 
in them only a grand spectacle. Be it so; but 
are they not necessary for the people, who would 
otherwise have recourse to corrupt, worldly de¬ 
monstrations ? It is necessary for truth to speak 
through the senses in order to reach the soul. 
The ceremonies are nothing else than the great 
truths made visible ; the Church adapts herself 
to the needs of human nature. Whatever may 


262 


A ppendix. 


be siiid against the singing and the ceremonies on 
the missions, facts prove their utility ; for it 'is 
public prayer, the singing of hymns, and the 
ceremonies that give life to the Redemptorist 
missions, because all these answer to the wants 
of the people, who thus take an active part in the 
exercises of the mission. On these occasions the 
people throng the church and leave it filled with 
compunction and piety, being always resolved to 
return to hear the missionaries. Many souls, who 
had remained insensible to the preaching of the 
Word of God, formed the resolution to change 
their life at witnessing one or the other of the 
ceremonies of the mission. Often the act of 
reparation, the procession of the cross, or the 
consecration to the Blessed Virgin ensured the 
success of the mission, until then doubtful. 

Public prayer, the singing of hymns, and the 
ceremonies have* the not less important result of 
overcoming human respect. Those men who 
have prayed and sung aloud in the church and in 
the streets of their parish, often in the presence 
of a crowd of strangers who have come from the 
neighboring parishes; those men who have re¬ 
ceived publicly the scapular; those young men 


Appendix, 


263 


who have carried the cross in the procession, 
fear not after the mission to profess themselves 
Christians, and to take an active part in the 
works and the demonstrations of other Cath¬ 
olics. 

These results are too apparent to deserve 
further comment. We know distinguished pre¬ 
lates, to whom the ceremonies, etc., appeared too 
vulgar, tending only to excite the imagination, 
who have acknowledged their happy results, and 
recommended them especially to those parishes 
most difficult to be reformed. If the tree is 
known by its fruit, this sufficiently proves the 
worth of the method followed by the Redemp- 
torists, considering the great number of missions 
they have given since their arrival in Belgium, 
and the blessings which God has unceasingly 
bestowed upon them. 

For forty years the Redemptorists have in¬ 
cessantly labored in Belgium; and though-the 
fathers of eight houses are still occupied in 
every diocese of the country, still their number 
and their incessant activity are insufficient to 
answer the demands made upon their zeal by the 
confidence of the bishops and the clergy. Does 


264 


Appendix. 


not this confidence of the pastors of souls, who 
can truly appreciate the results of missions, prove 
the utility of the method adopted by the mis¬ 
sionaries? Bishops and priests unhesitatingly 
assert that God blesses their labors in a mar¬ 
vellous manner. 

It is unnecessary to mention here the fruits 
generally produced by these missions: the many 
stained consciences cleansed, the many sacrile¬ 
gious confessions repaired, the many abuses abol¬ 
ished. Suffice it to consider, in the first place, 
the many returns of persons who had abandoned 
the practice of their religious duties ; and, in the 
second place, the reviving of the spirit of piety 
in souls. The more frequent reception of the 
sacraments, the increase of the spirit of prayer 
and devotion to the Blessed Virgin, are blessings 
which must in a great measure be attributed-to 
the Redemptorist missions. The associations 
formed or re-established by the fathers, when¬ 
ever circumstances permit, have contributed not 
a little to revive the spirit of piety. 

It is true that these fruits are not always 
lasting ; for, apart from those who persevere, 
there are always some, particularly among the 


Appeyidix, 


265 


young men, who relapse into their disorders. 
But who is ignorant of the inconstancy of hu¬ 
man nature and the numberless inventions of 
the powers of evil ? In order to prevent these 
relapses, Saint Alphonsus established a practice 
peculiar to the Redemptorists—that of the re¬ 
newal given a few months after each mission. 
These renewals complete the extirpation of 
abuses, and often result in the conversion of 
those who rejected the grace of the mission. 

One of the most zealous of the^ prelates 
whom Belgium honors, Mgr. Van Bommel, 
Bishop of Liege, has declared he could easily 
distinguish those parishes which had received 
the blessings of a mission from those that had 
been deprived of such aid. He extolled the 
ceremony of the erection of the cross as an 
efficacious means to engrave upon hearts the 
remembrance of the mission. His lordship, 
on arriving in a parish, knelt with the people 
at the foot of the mission cross, in order to 
gain the indulgences attached to it. 

Without doubt, after the expiration of a cer¬ 
tain time, it becomes necessary to repeat the 
exercises of the mission; for, besides other 


266 


Appendix. 


general causes, drawn from our nature and thjs 
influence of the spirit of evil, another genera¬ 
tion will have grown up. For this reason the 
bishops—and among others his Grace the Arch¬ 
bishop of Mechlin—have prescribed in their 
diocesan statutes that the exercises of a mis¬ 
sion be given in each parish every seventh or 
eighth year. 


j. 

Oj'atio ad Matreni Divini Past or is, utiliter du 
• cenda a Patribus in Visitatione Beatissimce 
Virginis, Tempore Missionis. 

Salve, O Mater divini Pastoris, post Jesum 
spes mea et salus mea! Sine, obsecro, ut ad 
pedes tuos pusillum requiescam de labore meo, 
ac pro me et populo tuo isto novas ac magnas 
a te gratias implorem. 

Credo Jesum Christum, Filium tuum, Pastorem 
esse istarum ovium, pro quibus non dubitavit 
effundere sanguinem suum, et crucis subire tor- 
mentum. Credo etiam pretium hujus sanguinis 
in te fuisse collatum, ac neminem perire ad 


Appendix. 


267 


quern benigna respicere dignaris. Audio enim 
S. Bernardum mild dicentem, nunquam auditum 
esse a saeculo, quod aliquis, tuam implorans 
misericordiam, a te sit derelictus. Audio S. 
Alphonsum mihi clamantem, quod nemo salvus 
fiat, quern tu, O Mater ! non protexeris. 

Accipe ergo preces supplices, quas tibi pro 
me et populo isto in hac hora tibi offero. Si 
inveni gratiam coram oculis tuis, salva me et 
populum istum, pro quo tibi obsecro. Tui 
sunt, sed mihi eos dedisti. Tui sunt, nam illos 
diligis, ut^ mater amorosa filios suos. Proprio 
Filio tuo non parcens, ilium pro illorum salute 
in mortem tradidisti. Sed mihi eos dedisti, ut 
per verbum ministerii nostri convertantur, ac 
vere conversi te tuumque Filium diligant ac in 
aeternum laudent. Benedic ergo, O pia Mater ! 
benedic, O tu Refugium peccatorum, et post 
Jesum, unica illorum Spes! oves perditas hujus 

parochiae N-. Quantumvis diu longeque a 

te erraverint, reduc pietosa manu tua omnes 
ad pedes nostros. Nemo, quaeso, damnandus 
ex hac missione discedat; sed omnes in his 
diebus misericorditer ad pascua Jesu, dilecti 
Filii tui, revertantur. Da illis evidens signum 



268 


Appendix, 


misericordiae tuae, fontes lacrymarum jugiter 
manantes, cor contritum ac docile. 

Respice etiam super nos, famulos tuos, quibus 
Jesus Filius tuus dedit ministerium reconcilia- 
tionis; consolare nos jucundo vultu tuo inter 
tot labores quos pro gloria Filii tui hisce diebus 
suscepimus; ac robora animum nostrum, ne 
zelus noster tepescat, sed magis semper ardeat. 
Custodi cor et sensus nostros, ne, nimio laborum 
pondere oppressi, nobismetipsos nos denege- 
mus, ac, neglecta propria salute, tandem rep- 
robi fiamus. Permaneat unusquisque nostrum 
in proposito cordis sui. Mente revolvat ac 
opere exequatur quidquid initio hujus mis- 
sionis sibi statuerit. Agat negotium profectus 
sui, instet in meditatione, et precibus jacula- 
toriis iisque fervidis se cum Deo uniat. Omni 
custodia servet cor suum, ac pactum ineat cum 
oculis, ne cogitet quidem de virgine. Immacu- 
latum se custodiat ab omni contagione mundi. 
Sic plenus mentis, et tibi tuoque Filio dilecto 
charior efifectus, ad suos revertetur, et sibi in 
Domino gaudere licebit, quod et haec missio in 
coelis est adscripta et copiosam illi mercedem 
praeparavit. Amen. 


• Appendix, 


269 


K. 

Account of Father Bernard's Third Voyage to 
America^ given in a Letter from Rev, Father 
Bold to the Father Rector of the Corivent at 
Wittem {page 124). 

In Chapter XL of this little work I have 
briefly related the third voyage of Father Ber¬ 
nard to America (January 27 to March 19, 1851). 
On this-voyage he had with him a number of his 
confreres. These were: Father De Landtsheer, 
of the Diocese of Ghent ; Fathers Hecker, Wal¬ 
worth, Kittel, and Bold, together with the stu¬ 
dents Henry Hellemans, of the Diocese of Mech¬ 
lin, Henry Giesen, of Aix-la-Chapelle, Michael 
Muller, and Joseph Wirth. 

Before proceeding to the account of the voy¬ 
age I propose giving a short sketch of the two 
Belgians who have already gone to their re¬ 
ward. 

Charles Louis de Landtsheer was born in the 
village of Calken (East Flanders), Belgium, De¬ 
cember 21, 1812. 


Appendix. • 


270 

Having completed his preparatory studies, he 
entered the Seminary of Ghent in 1835, and dis¬ 
tinguished himself by his great progress in philo¬ 
sophy and theology. He was ordained priest 
May 25, 1839, appointed vicar, first of 

Strypen, afterwards of Melsele, in 1841. “An 
ardent zeal for the glory of God, great charity 
towards his neighbor, and a holy severity to¬ 
wards himself, made of him an exemplary priest 
according to the heart of God ” (Obituary No¬ 
tice). He had spent twelve years in the exer¬ 
cise of the holy ministry in his own country, 

♦ 

when, feeling himself called to labor on foreign 
missions, he earnestly begged leave of Mgr. 
Delbecque to enter the Congregation of the 
Most Holy Redeemer. The bishop was not dis¬ 
posed to grant his request, but yielded at length 
to his repeated solicitations. Accordingly, he en¬ 
tered the Redemptorist Convent at Saint Trond, 
where he received the habit of the order, Octo¬ 
ber 15, 1850, Feast of Saint Teresa. He left Eu¬ 
rope in January, 185*1, and landed at New York 
on the Feast of Saint Joseph of the same year 
(March 19). Having completed his novitiate, 
he pronounced his vows, October 15, 1851. He 


Appendix. 


271 


was sent to New York during Lent of the fol¬ 
lowing year to assist the fathers, several of whom 
were very ill at that time, whilst the others were 
overladen with work of the most arduous nature, 
on account of the plague that had just broken 
out. The spiritual care of the emigrants was 
allotted to him, and he devoted himself exclu¬ 
sively to their welfare. But Father de Landt- 
sheer was soon to fall a victim to his charity. 
During the illness of Father Cubin he could not 
resist the impulse of his zeal to visit the plague- 
stricken in the hospitals, notwithstanding the 
earnest remonstrances of his confreres and the 
inclemency of the weather. But he would listen 
only to the voice of charity. Although he re¬ 
mained without nourishment all of that day—for, 
with the exception of a small crust of bread and 
a little wine, he had tasted nothing—he visited a 
great many persons afflicted with typhoid fever. 
He was attacked by the fever on the following 
Sunday, after High Mass, and war obliged to 
take to his bed. This happened on the Feast of 
Saint Joseph, the first anniversary of his arrival in 
America. At first neither his confreres nor the 
physician apprehended any danger, because he 


2J2 


A ppendix. 


had suffered from the same disease when yet a 
secular priest. God had other ends in view. 
After an illness of ten days his disease assumed 
alarming symptoms. Having been fortified with 
the last sacraments, he peacefully surrendered 
his soul to its Maker, April 2, Feast of the Do¬ 
lors of the Blessed Mother of God. He re¬ 
mained perfectly conscious up to his last mo¬ 
ment, and kept his eyes steadily fixed on the 
image of the crucified Redeemer and the picture 
of the Ever Blessed Virgin Mary. The fathers 
and lay brothers of the community stood around 
his bed of death, and gave vent to their grief in 
sobs and sighs. The repeated visitation of death 
in their little community increased their sorrow. 
Within nine months four of their number had 
been snatched away. 

The deceased was in all respects an exemplary 
religious and a holy priest filled with truly apos¬ 
tolic zeal, which endeared him not only to his 
confreres, but also to all those who had been 
the objects of his charitable ministry. 

The obsequies took place on Palm Sunday 
(1852). His body was placed next to those of 
his brothers in religion who had preceded him 


Appendix. 


273 


into paradise, where, we doubt not, he is enjoy¬ 
ing the blissful society of his Divine Redeemer, 
whom on earth he had loved so tenderly and 
served so ' faithfully, together with that of the 
Blessed Virgin Mary and his holy father Al- 
phonsus. 

Henry Hellemans was born in the village of 
Wavre Ste. Catherine, not far from Malines, 
June 23, 1823 (July 16, 1823). 

Having partly completed his studies at the 
petit seminaire of Malines, he entered the Con¬ 
gregation of the Most Holy Redeemer at Saint 
Trond, and made his religious profession one 
year later. 

The American missions had always been 
the object of his dearest desires. Being yet 
a student at Wittem, permission was granted 
him by his superiors to devote himself to the 
apostolic labors in the United States. He came 
to America with Father Bernard in 1851, 
and completed his studies in Cumberland a^id 
Rochester. Bishop Neumann raised him to the 
dignity of the priesthood in Philadelphia, on 
Holy Saturday (March 26, 1853). 

Considered as a novice, student, or priest. 


274 


Appendi'x. 


Henry Hellemans was at all times a roodel reli¬ 
gious. He excelled in the spirit of prayer and 
in a remarkable love of holy purity. God seems 
to have taken this young priest out of a sinful 
world in order that the lustre of his virtues 
might not be dimmed by its malice, nor his im¬ 
maculate purity suffer the least stain. His spiri¬ 
tual director said of him: “ He was a youth 

of angelic purity.” His constant walking in the 
presence of God enabled him to discern the 
goodness and wisdom of Providence, even in the 
brute creation. He practised true humility, but 
the thought never entered his mind that he 
really possessed this virtue. For when he was 
seen exercising himself in humility by perform¬ 
ing menial offices, he remarked, with great in¬ 
genuousness, that it was a very useful exercise 
to supply the want of the virtue of humility 
by acts of humility. 

He was for a short time attached to Saint 
Michael’s church in Baltimore. Whenever he 
performed the Way of the Cross with the peo¬ 
ple, it was his custom to give a short explana¬ 
tion of the devotion before reciting the usual 
prayers, during which his emotion often inter- 


Appendix. 


275 


rupted his words, and tears of devotion always 
accompanied his remarks. Owing to constant 
ill-health, he was unable to write his sermons. 
This also prevented him from acquiring a tho¬ 
rough knowledge of the German language. His 
sermons, however, delivered with the utmost 
simplicity, produced astonishing effects. In the 
pulpit he appeared filled with the Spirit of God. 
Sometimes he would stop short in the middle 
of a sentence, not being able to find the proper 
words to complete it. On such occasions he 
was not at a loss, but simply remarked : Nicht 

wahr^ ihr wisst schon was ich sagen zvill? ” (You 
well know what I wish to say, do you not ?); and 
it is surprising to learn that his hearers under¬ 
stood him full well. 

It was said above that he was constantly 
indisposed. His malady assumed the form of 
pulmonary consumption, and his body at last 
succumbed to the weight of infirmities. On the 
Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin 
Mary (November 21, 1854), whom he had loved 
with an especial love, and by whom he seemed 
to be specially favored, he presented his pure soul 
to God, through the hands of his Blessed Mother, 


2/6 


Appendix, 


This young priest, possessed of a zealous and 
generous soul, gave promise of becoming a use¬ 
ful and prominent laborer in the vineyard of 
the Lord. But he was pleased to deprive the 
congregation of a dutiful son by an untimely 
death.* 

The following account is taken from a letter 
written by Rev. Father Bold. I have taken the 
liberty of somewhat modifying and abridging it. 
To the letter is annexed an edifying postscript 
written by Father Bernard. This will serve to 
complete the portrait of the generous soul whose 
life has been described. Another powerful mo¬ 
tive which induced me to insert the letter and 
postscript was the fact of their being too inti¬ 
mately connected with the history of Saint Al- 
phonsLis’ Congregation not to be published. 

New York, March 22, 1851. 
Very Reverend Father Rector and 

VERY DEAR BROTHERS: Thanks for the fer- 

* For the above brief but edifying sketches we are indebted 
to the kindness of the Chronicler of the American Province 
of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, to whom we 
desire in this place to tender our sincere thanks.— Transl. 


Appendix, 


277 


vent prayers you addressed to heaven in our 
behalf! This should form the first sentence of 
my letter, because it is the first sentiment of 
my heart in writing to you. Gloria Patri! 

After having been at sea for fifty-two days, we 
arrived in this new country, already dear to us, 
which has fallen to our lot. Your prayers have 
not been in vain,; God has heard them, as he 
hears the prayers of his saints, by giving us num¬ 
berless occasions to increase the store of our 
little spiritual treasure, instead of acquiring the 
perishable goods of this earth. Per miiltas tribn- 
lationes oportiiit nos intrare in regnum. Let us 
hope that, in compliance with his merciful de¬ 
signs on us, we have buried in the depths of the 
ocean the remnants of the old man. 

(After relating how the Redemptorist voyagers, 
on their way through Paris, received some pious 
souvenirs at the Seminary of Foreign Missions, 
at Notre Dame des Victoires, etc.. Father Dold 
continues his narration in these terms :) 

Notwithstanding the beautiful monuments of 
all kinds which we admired in the capital of the 
civilized world, we were anxious to depart as 
soon as possible. We left the great city of 


2/8 


Appendix. 


Paris on the morning of the 24th of January. 
We were borne along with remarkable rapidity 
over a vast‘and fertile country. The forests, val¬ 
leys, and mountains of Normandy each moment 
seemed to represent the environs of Wittem. 
It was now mid-day, and in spirit we united 
with you in making particular examen. At four 
o’clock in the afternoon we were informed that 
we were nearing the city of Rouen. This an¬ 
cient capital of the Normans is built on a steep 
rock, which renders it almost inaccessible from 
every point. At some distance from the city we 
entered a tunnel, and, when we issued from it, 
we found to our surprise that we were in the 
middle of the old city. - Its half-ruined walls, 
protected by numerous towers, still reveal the 
antiquity of its origin and the might of its an¬ 
cient lords. At present Rouen is the centre of 
a great commercial trade in cotton and yarn. On 
leaving the city a heavy fog covered the valleys 
and mountains, which latter always grew higher as 
we proceeded. Twilight now came on, and seem¬ 
ed to invite us to close our bodily eyes, and to 
open those of the soul to the light from on high. 
The time of meditation had come, and lasted 


Appendix. 


279 


until seven o’clock, if not without distraction, 
at least without anything remarkable occurring. 
Towards seven o’clock in the evening we arrived at 
Havre. After a hot dispute between two coach¬ 
men, who wished to prove the possibility of the 
impossible by wishing to have all of us in their 
carriage at the same time, we were trought to the 
Hotel d’Allemagne, which had been recommend¬ 
ed to us in Paris. But there was not even room 
enough to accommodate six persons for the 
night. We were therefore obliged to get into 
our carriages, and, after having been taken almost 
through the whole city in search of a suitable 
lodging, at last found accommodations at the 
Hotel des Indes. It was long after nine o’clock 
before we were seated at table. Our appetites 
were voracious, for we had tasted nothing since 
ten in the morning; but, thank God, nothing 
more was wanting! Next day being Sunday, 
the worthy dean of Notre Dame allowed us 
to offer the Holy Sacrifice in his church. It 
was the last time we enjoyed this happiness 
in Europe. Father De Landtsheer had even the 
honor of singing the parochial Mass. I have 
often heard people speak of the devotion of 


28 o 


Appendix, 


Frenchmen and sailors; in this most frequented 
port of France we have had occasion to con¬ 
vince ourselves of the truth of the remark. I 
can testify that nowhere have I met with a 
piety, I will not say more modest or more recol¬ 
lected, but certainly more general, frank, and 
% 

sincere, than in this city. 

Heaven seemed to declare in our favor ; for the 
wind was all that could be desired, and presaged 
a happy departure on the next day. We re¬ 
turned to our hotel at about five o’clock to com¬ 
plete our final preparations. The confidence ex¬ 
pressed at Wittem by good Henry Giesen, that 
he would not be attacked with sea-sickness, be¬ 
came a firm conviction with him in Paris; but at 
Havre it was changed into a simple hope. Henry 
Hellemans did not consider himself less invin¬ 
cible ; he could not conceive how the sea could 
possibly inconvenience him. We will see, later 
on, how these inconceivable ideas were realized. 

After supper we had to repair to the vessel to 
pass the night; but before leaving the hotel 
Father Bernard assembled us for the last time, 
and, with that firmness so well known to you, he 
said in a decided and penetrating tone : “ My 


Appendix. 


281 


brothers, we are now going to embark. There is 
still time. You are free to-day ; to-morrow you 
will be so no longer. Make your choice, speak 
candidly; the moment is decisive, and your de¬ 
cision will be irrevocable.” 

The event proved that this last trial of our 
vocation was to be its most striking proof. May 
our Lord Jesus Christ be for ever blessed for it, 
and also the Most Holy and Immaculate Virgin 
Mary, the Mother of us all, the hope and the 
consolation of all true sons of Saint Alphonsus! 

It was eight o’clock at night when we arrived 
at the place where the Helvetia^ that was to 
carry us to America, was anchored. We went 
aboard carrying our valises, in the midst of fright¬ 
ful darkness, and rain which poured down in tor¬ 
rents. At every step we were exposed to the 
danger of falling into the sea. I could not help 
thinking of that narrow and ice-covered plank 
which Saint Francis de Sales was daily obliged 
to cross to go to Chablais. This was the glorious 
commencement of that “perfect joy”'of which 
you spoke at Wittem before our setting out. 
When we arrived the captain was absent. An 
insolent, uncivilized negro did all in his power to 


282 


Appendix. 


prevent us from passing the night on board the 
vessel, and wished to oblige us to return to the 
hotel, although the night was far advanced and 
the weather very inclement. At this juncture 
the boatswain came up, and put an end to the ar¬ 
rogance of the lazy negro, who did not wish to 
give himself the trouble to prepare our cabins. 
After some delay the cabins were assigned to 
us ; in each there were two berths, one above the 
other. On the first night the boards of my berth 
suddenly gave way, and I fell upon my dear 
“ teacher,”* who was lying in the lower berth. 
The next morning we were awakened before 
sunrise by the noisy sailors, who were running 
about on deck; and- the voices of some women 
and fhe cries of children soon informed us that 
we were not the only persons on board. There 
were no less than one hundred and thirty emi¬ 
grants huddled together in the steerage. The 
greater part of them were Alsatians, natives of 
Baden or Swabia, all Protestants, and some Swiss 
Catholics; who, tired of the heavy yoke resting 
on their unhappy country, went to seek in the 
New World what one of them most feelingly 
* By “-teacher” Father Dold refers to Father Bernard.— Tr. 


Appendix, 


283 


called die freiste Freiheit —the most freedom. 
Besides this motley collection of wretched people, 
most of whom had lost' all sense of shame and 
self-respect, we also had the horror of being in 
the company of several of Garibaldi’s partisans. 
They probably intended to execute in a land 
more adapted to their purposes the black de¬ 
signs which they had been unable to carry out 
in Rome. We must, however, admit that their 
very appearance struck terror into our hearts; 
their hideous countenances bespoke the blackness 
of their souls. During the voyage they had the 
boldness to attack with their knives some French¬ 
men, who were also steerage passengers; but 
each time the Garibaldians fell victims to their 
audacity. We saw two of their number' seri¬ 
ously wounded. 

In the second class there were only two French 
families, and two artists from Lombardy, on their 
way to California to seek their fortunes. The 
head of one of the families was a professor from 
Auvergne, who wished to obtain a situation in 
New York. The other appeared to be either an 
emerited French gendarme or a member of some 
sect. He was a type of a Frenchman : short and 


284 


Appcndix. 


plump, well dressed, as touchy as gunpowder, and 
wore a huge mustache. He appeared to be a 
man of about forty years of age. He was witty, 
but lacked judgment; he spoke of everything 
without knowing anything, and appeared to 
know everything, whilst it was evident to all that 
he knew nothing. It might be said that his ex¬ 
perience consisted in turning from north to 
south, and from south to north, like a weather¬ 
cock. Being wealthy, he thought of going to 
California, or even to China, to play double or 
quits. But just at this time he happened to be 
on his way to New York; and when he arrives 
in America, he will probably reflect whether it 
had been expedient for him to leave Europe. 

Our little company occupied the first-class 
cabin, thanks to the solicitude of Father Ber¬ 
nard, who profited of a reduction of twenty-five 
francs for every missionary to America. There 
were only two other persons in the first-class, one 
as singular as the other. One of them was a 
young American of incredible levit}^ who had 
spent several months in Paris to learn dancing. 
As he could speak only on trivial subjects, he 
was soon constrained to seek elsewhere for per- 


Appendix. 


285 


sons, more refined than ourselves, ready to listen 
to his silly prattle. The other, more whimsical 
still, was a female of sallow complexion, brazen¬ 
faced, and exceedingly playful and noisy in her 
manners. She was one of Abraham’s daughters, 
and had been married in New York. The pass¬ 
port of Mad.-was altogether incorrect, and it 

was said that she had not even paid for her 
cabin. She was elegantly dressed, and might 
have been taken for a Lola Montez had she 
possessed but a particle of judgment. It is 
needless to inform you that this sort of society / 
could have been anything but agreeable to us. 
By some good chance we shortly got rid of her 
molestations. . Our happy ignorance of American 
etiquette, joined to a want of sympathy for a 
Jewess of this description, so completely discon¬ 
certed her that she resolved to shut herself up in 
her cabin. After this she appeared in the din¬ 
ing-saloon only on Sundays, and even then she 
was obliged to sit opposite Father Bernard, 
and meet his piercing look. We were at length 
left to ourselves in our floating convent. This 
was one of the few consolations of our tedious 
voyage. 



286 


Appendix. 


If to these passengers you add thirty sailors 
of all nationalities; two negro cooks; a boat¬ 
swain, a former companion of Father Walworth ; 
a captain, thirty-three years of age, who had 
crossed all the known seas eighteen times; dog 
Jack, who soon became Father Kittel’s favo¬ 
rite; four rams, two sheep, a dozen turkeys, 
and twice as many ducks and chickens, you will 
have the complete number of living beings on 
board the Helvetia when it set sail for New York 
on Monday, January 27, 1851. 

It was six o’clock in the morning when we left 
the harbor under the patronage of our dearest 
Mother Mary. The weather was most beau¬ 
tiful and the wind favorable. The Channel 
was sufficiently agitated to rock our vessel in 
such a way as to displace the contents of the 
stomachs of people not accustomed to this kind 
of sport. We had been at sea scarcely half an 
hour when the p^issengers, who had been attract¬ 
ed to the deck to witness the rising of the sun, 
disappeared one after another. Sea-sickness ,was 
now commencing to attack the voyagers, and 
many were seen running about, paying their tri¬ 
bute to Neptune from every available spot. Our 


A ppendix. 


2 (S7 

little Frenchman was excusable, at least this 
time, for having acted before reflecting. He 
took refuge in a staircase, over which he leaned, 
supporting his head and stomach, whilst some¬ 
thing differing from words came from beneath 
his gray mustache. He stared about with a wild 
look, and his tongue seemed immovable ; in a 
word, he presented a picture of sore distress, and 
might have been taken for one of those fabulous 
beings which serve as water-spouts to Gothic 
churches. Sea-sickness did not spare us. Fathers 
Hecker and De Landtsheer and the students 
were the first to set an example not exactly 
worthy of imitation. Father Giesen especially 
was several times seen running to the stern of 
the vessel, and not without reason ; you remem¬ 
ber he is the one who thought he was strong 
enough at least to withstand sea-sickness. He 
was appointed infirmarian, and, although suffer¬ 
ing more than the others, he was always on his 
feet, nursing the sick, watching over those who 
were still enjoying good health, and at stated 
times distributed the sweetmeats which he took 
the precaution to obtain from Father Pilat at 
Brussels. He performed all of these duties 


288 


Appetidix. 


with a charity and a constancy that greatly edi¬ 
fied us during the whole voyage. Father Hecker 
and the students Wirth, Muller, and Hellemans 
had the most violent attacks, and suffered almost 
continually for three whole weeks. Our dear 
Hellemans was the man of systems, and invented 
a new one every day. One day the comfortable 
system was his; on the next what he called the 
aquatic system had the preference. The young 
man had never been sick, and now, finding him¬ 
self so ill, thought that he was already fn a 
new world, even before arriving in America. 
Michael Muller had a fixed idea of another kind. 
The irregular motion of the vessel placed him in 
great perplexity. He remained seated almost all 
the while, and whenever he was obliged to rise 
he was sure to make three attempts before suc¬ 
ceeding. At first he would place both of his 
hands on the chair, looking about in all di¬ 
rections, as if to assure himself that the floor 
was really firm; he would next extend his legs 
with great precaution, and at length rise very 
gravely. When once on his feet, he would 
venture to make a few steps, keeping his arms 
stretched out to seize hold of the wall nearest 


Appendix. 


289 


to him. . . . Father Bernard and myself 

were not exempt from many little annoyances 
owing to a situation so foreign to our usual life; 
but by means of a little less simplicity and great¬ 
er ingenuity we were able to dissemble our griev¬ 
ances. The na'ivete of these two fratres on 
many occasions furnished us with subjects for 
innocent jokes. 

With all this we • were continually advanc¬ 
ing, and at about ten o’clock were on the 
high- sea. The steamer which had taken us 
in tow up to this time left us to return to 
Havre. The sailors, who until then appeared 
very drowsy, acquired fresh vigor as soon as the 
management of the vessel was left to them. 
They unfurled the sails, singing a hymn with 
which they begin, continue, and end their voy¬ 
ages. It was heard at all'times, whether prospe¬ 
rous or adverse, and began with this sublime sen¬ 
timent : Whiskey is the life of men. A sailor 
never performs any part of his work without 
singing, or rather howling in a savage manner, 
similar to the unearthly yells we used to hear 
in the environs of Wittem during harvest-time. 
We were under full sail, and had been making 


290 


Appendix, 


rapid progress for more than seven hours, and 
the sun had just been hid from view by a thin 
fog, when the captain informed us that we 
would probably experience a heavy gale on 
the following night. You may well imagine 
that this news was not calculated to awaken 
any particular joy in the hearts of inexperi¬ 
enced navigators, who hoped, perhaps, like 
myself, to cross the ocean without encoun¬ 
tering any storm. Fortunately, the captain 
proved to be a false prophet. The shades of 
night enveloped us in their dark mantles, but 
for most of us it was a sleepless night. A mag¬ 
nificent sunrise greeted our rising next morning. 
The fury of the wind, the visible swelling of 
the sea, the agitated, snow-capped billows, the 
sky, covered with rapidly-sailing clouds that 
were reflected in the water, appeared as so 
many forerunners of the frightful storm we 
were soon to encounter. It was one o’clock 
(January 28) when the dark and menacing tem¬ 
pest suddenly appeared on the horizon ; a 
dull but constantly increasing noise, that beg¬ 
gars all description, announced its swift ap¬ 
proach. The surface of the watery plain be- 


Appendix. 


191 

-came as black as ebony, furrowed by long 
strings of white foam, and seemed to take 
part in the general mourning of nature. The 
tempfest burst upon us before we had time to 
take the necessary precautions. All the sails 
were still spread ; the captain and sailors were 
not prepared in the least. But what activity, 
energy, and intrepidity do not these men, who 
apparently are in a constant state of insensi¬ 
bility, exhibit at the moment of a storm ! They 
throw themselves out of their hammocks, scale 
the rigging, climb to the tops of the masts, 
stand on a simple rope at a height of more 
than sixty feet above the watery abyss, and 
exposed to all the fury of the tempest, with a 
hardihood that must terrify any one who watch¬ 
es their movements. . . . The rain fell in 

torrents. The low, hollow sound of the sea 
was changed into a roaring and a thundering 
far more terrible than the most violent storm 
on land. The surging billows rose to the height 
of mountains, and bore along with them to this 
giddy height our helpless vessel, only to throw 
it from their summits into deep valleys of 
water, as if to immerge it in the abyss. True 


292 


A ppendix. 


it is that there is nothing more wonderful and 
sublime than this rising of the sea —Mirabiles 
el'ationes mavis —but, at the same time, there is 
nothing more terrific. I can assure you that I 
could not conceal a sense of terror ; and if I re¬ 
mained on deck, it was not courage that kept me 
there, but the fear of going down into my cabin, 
where all the horrors of darkness were added to 
the fury of the tempest. In the interior of the 
vessel the death-like silence was broken only by 
the roaring of the sea, the awful shocks caused 
by the rolling of the waves, the cracking of the 
rudder, masts, and sail-yards. This first toss 
was not to be the last ; it was simply the pre¬ 
lude of what awaited us. After four hours of 
fruitless fury calm was restored, or rather the 
storm did not rage with, the same violence ; but 
we had now to combat unceasingly against a 
furious west wind which was as bad as a storm. 
We were barely out of danger when the Jewess 
began to play on her harmonica, and the little 
Frenchman, like a nightingale after a thunder¬ 
storm, warbled a joyous melody. German and 
French airs were heard from all parts of the 
entrepont, whilst we sang the Laudate Dominiim 


'Appendix, 


293 


and the Ave maris Stella. Such is man. As 
soon as he thinks himself out of the reach of 
danger he seems already to have forgotten it, 
and abandons himself to joy. But by this 
unchecked gladness his inmost thoughts and 
hopes are made manifest. 

The following night was a very tempestuous 
one ; the tossing and rolling of the ship affected 
some of us in an unpleasant way. Early in the 
morning I was attacked by sea-sickness; and 
during the day all the others who had with¬ 
stood the first attack underwent the same fate, 
not even excepting Father Bernard. Father 
Kittel, who generally promenaded on deck in 
company with dog Jack to enjoy the sea-breeze, 
was invincible for a long time. But on the 
seventh day he too was obliged to surrender. 
The tacking of the ship became more and more 
difficult. ' Having been driven back by a strong 
wind from the southwest, all we could do was 
to ply to the windward. We had to change sail 
every moment to avoid being driven upon the 
coasts of France or England, equally distant 
from us. * On the 30th, at nine A.M., we found 
ourselves exactly in the same place as the even- 


294 


Appendix. 


ing previous, although we had been sailing all 
night. At one time the captain thought of re¬ 
turning to port. This was also the wish of the 
passengers, who feared, with just reason, that 
the sailors, exhausted by so much useless labor, 
would refuse to perform their duty. But he 
was obstinately bent on pursuing the voyage, 
and tried to persuade himself that a wind so 
violent could not be of long duration. He soon 
had reason to repent of his obstinacy. At six 
P.M. we were suddenly assailed by another 
squall. The waves and liL.il fell upon the deck 
with incredible impetuosity: the sea not only 
roared, but shrieked and howled. We were 
still ten miles off the coast of England, but in 
the twinkling of an eye we were thrown upon 
it. We were now fluctuating between life and 
death ; this was clear to every one. The vessel 
was irresistibly driven towards the famous cape 
of Beachy Head, the remembrance of which shall 
never be effaced from my mind. At this place 
there is only one fathom and a half of water 
(our vessel required three), and the shore is 
extremely dangerous on account of the rocks, 
which are on a level with the water. The 


Appendix, 


295 


wind was carrying us directly towards these 
frightful shoals. We were at table when the 
captain, hastily passing us, said: “ Eat well! ” 
Father Walworth caught his meaning. He 
wished to say: It will, perhaps, be your last 
meal. At every moment onr situation became 
more perilous. Fires of distress were lighted 
on deck, but no answer was returned. The 
sailors ran about the vessel with dismal torch¬ 
es, which contrasted greatly with the fright¬ 
ful darkness; but they were extinguished by 
the wind almost im.mediately, and left us in 
the dark. At about nine o’clock we stood 
around Father Bernard at the foot of the main¬ 
mast. He told the novices De Landtsheer and 
Wirth to come to him at the critical moment to 
pronounce their vows ; and after having exhort¬ 
ed all of us to resign ourselves entirely to the 
will of God, under whose protection we were, 
he told us to seek some repose, promising that 
he himself would warn us of any danger in due 
time. In vain did I attempt to obey ; for sleep 
was unwilling to close my eyes. It seems to 
me that I never in all my life prayed with so 
much faith and fervor. Fatigue at length as- 


296 Appcndix. 

sertecl its right, and after having recommended 
to my Guardian Angel the plank I might seize 
hold of in case of shipwreck, I fell asleep in the 
arms of Providence, whose watchful eye is ever 
resting on the poor missionary. Oczi/i ejus in 
patiperem respiciunt. 

On the following morning, thanks to the pro¬ 
tection of our good Mother Mary, whom I in¬ 
voked without ceasing, we were out of danger. 
The sea was still in a state of violent commo¬ 
tion, and the wind seemed to subside for some 
moments, only to begin with redoubled fury. 
We had lost two sails; the rudder had been 
damaged considerably, but still the captain per¬ 
sisted in carrying on the struggle. It was only 
on the 31st of January, at three P.M., that, finding 
all resistance useless, he decided to make for the 
nearest port. The storm had driven us beyond 
Dover, and at about six.P.M. Ave cast anchor in 
the Downs, two miles from the little city of 
Deal, distant some leagues from Canterbury.. 
More than eighty vessels had also sought shelter 
there from the storm. You undoubtedly suppose 
that, after so disastrous a trial of -navigation, we 
were very glad to be able to take some repose. 



Appeyidix, 


297 


We were in sight of the ancient Isle of Saints, 
to-day a sad kingdom of error. But there, too, 
we had brothers, and this thought was sufficient 
to make us bless the hand that had led us 
to this coast. While awaiting favorable wind 
Father Bernard went to Clapham to surprise 
Father de Held and our other confreres with a 
visit. He accordingly left for London, February 
I, at nine A.M., in companywith our young cap¬ 
tain. In the meantime we were preparing to 
celebrate a double feast next day—the Feast 
of the Purification. Before leaving Father Ber¬ 
nard had made arrangements to procure us the 
consolation of offering the Holy Sacrifice at 
Deal. But, unhappily, our desires could not be 
fulfilled. At ten o’clock the wind became favor¬ 
able, and only, one hour later w'e saw the nume¬ 
rous vessels leaving the harbor. We were the 
only ones yet remaining in the bay, and impa¬ 
tiently awaited the return of chief tain. He 

arrived at eleven P.M., with Father Bernard, who 
had been only as far as London. On February 3, 
at ten A.M., the anchor was raised, and we 
went out to sea, not to leave it before our arrival 
in America. The Helvetia was going along 


298 


Appendix. 


under full sail, favored by an east wind, but 
only for a short time. It seemed as if heaven 
desired to give us an occasion of experiencing 
all the amenities that may be met with on the 
ocean. After having witnessed the grand spec¬ 
tacle of a storm at sea, we were also to enjoy 
all the annoyance .of perfect calm. Scarcely 
were we out of sight of land when the sea 
became as smooth as ice. In the evening the 
last rays of the sun, which was just sinking be¬ 
hind a blue-tinted cloud bordered with brilliant 
lines of purple hue, presented to our eyes one 
of the most enchanting views that the ocean 
can offer. 

The luminous globe slowly sank into the 
glittering waves ; it gilt once more the tops of 
our masts, and then disappeared. The night 
was as calm as the day had been; a slight but 
insufficient breeze continually moved the sails, 
but was unable to fill them. Early next morning 
I hurried on deck to contemplate the rising of 
the sun. I thought of you, my dear brothers, 
when the dazzling brightness of the east met my 
expectant gaze; I would have wished you to be 
with me, in order to behold the wonderful work 


/ 



Appendix, 


299 


of Him who will one day be our mutual recom¬ 
pense. In vain would I attempt to convey an 
idea of this magnificent spectacle. The illumined 
horizon ; that immense ball of fire, which seems 
to rise from the bosom of the sea ; those number¬ 
less, luminous rays that suddenly light up the 
vast expanse of the heavens ; and, above all, that 
long train of light reflected in the mirror of the 
waters, beginning at one extremity of the ocean 
and ending only at the ship, are so many things 
which my feeble pen would vainly attempt to 
describe. The sight of them produces in the 
soul an impression of grandeur which would sa¬ 
tiate it, if ever created beauty were able to do 
it. The shining disc of the star of day naturally 
reminded me of its all-powerful Creator and of 
the Divine Sun of Justice. The absence of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, so sensibly felt at sea, was the 
subject of my morning meditation . , . 

The calm was partly welcome to us, inasmuch 
as it enabled us to carry out the order of the 
daily exercises. Meditation, prayer, study, and 
pious conversations about Wittem, America, and 
Europe, divided the time left us by the whims of 
the ocean. During the day I was engaged with 


300 


Appc 7 idix. 


the treatise De Jure et Jnstitia, and at six in the 
evening I was present at the English class, which 
was given in the middle’of the vessel, by the faint 
light of a philosophical lamp, and often to the 
great hilarity of the officers, who heard us mur¬ 
dering their mother-tongue. . . . 

We left the English Channel under full sail, 
and for the last time cast our looks on the coasts 
of England and Europe. We were now floating 
over the abyss where the sounding-lead no 
longer finds bottom. . . . Several days of 

quiet sailing seemed to give promise of a pros¬ 
perous voyage. Alas ! we were soon undeceived. 
On the 15th of February, at two P.M., we were 
assailed by a storm not less furious, if not quite 
so dangerous, than the other two. It came on 
from the south, and suddenly plunged us into 
darkness. The wind blew with such violence 
that it threatened to carry away our masts : it 
lashed the waves into foam, and changed them 
into a heavy rain, and furiously drove them on 
like so many rolling mountains. But the most 
sublime moment of the tempest is when, having 
reached its greatest degree of rage, it ceases 
suddenly, as if God placed his finger on its 




Appendix. 


301 


mouth : Spiritus procellarum qtice facmnt verbiim 
cjus. We have not yet witnessed this grand mo¬ 
ment. Thereupon there ensues an admirable 
alternation of restlessness and calm, of agitation 
and peace. Nature seems to breath anew. The 
sea no longer foams, the sails flap languidly, 
and the vessel is helplessly borne along by the 
waves. . . . The next morning daylight re¬ 

appeared, and with it the sun. At about nine 
o’clock Father Kittle and myself were walking 
on deck, when all at once we saw issuing from 
the hatchway that leads to the deck a scarlet- 
colored semi-circumference^ intersected by a blue 
radius. It was our little Frenchman wearing a 
red cap, and to which was attached a blue tas¬ 
sel. He had risen much earlier than usual, and 
probably even before having taken the soup 
which he regularly ordered to be brought to his 
bed. At his approach we placed ourselves in a 
state of observation, anxious to witness the is¬ 
sue of this early apparition ; it could certainly 
be nothing less than dramatic. And in fact he 
had not even reached the head of the stairs and 
had barely had time to rub his eyes, before he 
.darted down-stairs like a flash of lightning, and 


302 


Appendix. 


with all the power of his lungs called upon his 
wife to come and behold the rising of the sun. 
“ C’est magnifique, c’est sublime!” said he, 
continually ascending and descending the stairs ; 
“ venez done voir, c’est adorable!” He could 
not be- accused of having spoken before reflect¬ 
ing, because he had simply spoken before having 
seen. The king of the day had emerged from 
the regions of Aurora more than two hours be¬ 
fore. 

On the 19th, at midnight, a strong wind sprang 
up in the northwest, and favored our course. 
We made no less than ten or twelve knots an 
hour. Eight days of this kind of wind would 
have carried us to New York. This transitory 
moment of gladness awakened within us a spirit 
of conjecture.- Father Kittel would sing High 
Mass in New York on the 2d of March. I chose 
the 5th, Ash-Wednesday. Father Bernard had 
declared in Paris that it would not take place 
before the Feast of Saint Joseph, and Father 
Giesen for the 25th. The votes of the others 
were uncertain. Father Bernard was pleased to 
repeat these words of Jonas : Adhuc qtiadraginia 
dies; but Father Muller ingenuously replied, 


Appeiidix. 


303 


Abbreviabiintur propter electos. It will be seen 
in the sequel which of us possessed most of 
the prophetic spirit. Unfortunately, the hope 
of a more prosperous voyage was once more 
to vanish. Even on the very next day those 
who had entertained the brightest hopes were 
forced to relinquish them. The wind had died 
out, and the calm brought with it a numerous 
and pleasant company in the midst of the ocean. 
More than fifty porpoises surrounded our vessel 
and indulged in their sports. When they plung¬ 
ed into the water, a fin was visible on their large 
backs, which was similar to a triangular sail. 
But this time we were not amused by the little 
Frenchman; the professor from Auvergne, who 
had broken off friendship with his messmate, 
and now cooked for himself, took his place. He 
was a man of extreme good-nature. His kind 
heart impelled him to look for some crumbs of 
biscuit wherewith to feed those greedy monsters. 
It is generally said that their appearance is a sign 
of bad weather; they, however, brought us a 
good south wind, and towards evening, when our 
sails began to fill, they followed the vessel for 
some time, as if to serve as our guard of honor. 


304 


Appcndix 


On the 22d a furious west wind opened an¬ 
other period of our voyage not less disastrous 
than that of the British Channel. The only dif¬ 
ference consisted in not being exposed to the 
danger of being driven on the shoals. One 
squall succeeded the other, and during eight 
days of painful navigation we barely advanced 
one day’s voyage. These were perhaps the most 
calamitous days of our voyage. But the rock¬ 
ing of the ship was not as prejudicial to us as 
it had been before. We began to become ac¬ 
customed to a seafaring life, and, after thirty 
days, the nauseous malady had disappeared al¬ 
most entirely. We laughed about it just as men 
laugh at past dangers that are no longer to be 
dreaded. On the 1st of March, although the 
wind had subsided somewhat, the rain still pre¬ 
vented us from walking on a deck of 168 feet 
in length and 28 in width. 

For the first time since our departure from the 
Downs we had fair wind, and the following day, 
March 2, being the Sunday preceding Ash-Wed- 
nesday, we had passed over one-half of our course. 
It was just the day upon which Father Kittel 
had promised himself the happiness of singing 


Appendix. 


305 


High Mass in New York. But if it was not allow¬ 
ed us to celebrate the Holy Mysteries on “ the- 
day that the Lord hath made,” pious and con¬ 
soling recollections were inscribed on our memo¬ 
ries in a very particular manner. We remem¬ 
bered that at the dawn of this very Sunday 
the Most Blessed Sacrament was exposed at 
Wittem to appease the anger of God during 
these days of riotous amusements; and, being 
occupied with this thought, we united ourselves 
in spirit to the fervent adoration of our con¬ 
freres. Our spirits were in your spirits, our hearts 
in your hearts. We received Holy Communion, 
we celebrated Mass, in union with you ; we took 
our turn together with you to prostrate our¬ 
selves at the feet of our Sweet Jesus. Oh ! how 
lovely is the bond of charity, how sweet it be¬ 
comes, how consoling, when it unites hearts in 
Jesus Christ, even beyond the seas! The more 
it is extended, the more is it strengthened and 
purified. Yes, my brothers, my dearly-beloved 
brothers, if I am unable to restrain my tears in 
tracing these lines, it is because, if ever I i-oved 
you, I love you to-day more than ever, and it is 
to Jesus 1 owe the happiness of loving you in him. 


3o6 


Appendix. 


I would wish to finish here the narration of 
the transitory things of this life, to converse with 
you on the infinite amiableness of our sweet Sa¬ 
viour Jesus, who procures for us this inestimable 
blessing of loving one another in him, were it 
not that the sweet duty of charity is not incom¬ 
patible with the thought of Jesus Christ. I will, 
therefore, continue for the love of him and of 
you. In the evening of this sacred day the 
north wind offered us the spectacle of an aurora 
borealis; but, to oui great regret, it was not suffi¬ 
ciently distinct. The two succeeding days were 
days of still more fervent and assiduous prayer 
at Wittem. They were also the two happiest 
days we spent at sea. The wind, beautiful 
weather, the sea, all prospered our course on 
these days of benediction. 

While (on Ash-Wednesday) these different 
events sweetened the annoyance of the calm, a 
gust of wind that had by degrees sprung up in 
the north drove us from the deck; and on the 
following morning we experienced the heaviest 
storm to which we had as yet been exposed. 
When a tempest comes from the north, it rages 
with perfect madness. The waves no longer 


Appendix. 


307 


rise; they are stretched out like a vast plain, and 
bend under the gusts of wind that weigh on 
them. The sea appears oppressed; it moans 
under the lashes of the icy, northern blasts, and 
in its impotent frenzy manifests its rage by 
thick foam, which covers it throughout its entire 
extent. The vessel shudders and trembles on the 
disturbed waters like a child under the hand of a 
furious master. Only two sails were left, and of 
these the main-sail was already rent, or rather 
cut in two from top to bottom. The sailors are 
much to be pitied during such frightful weather. 
Besides the bitter frost, which benumbs their 
limbs, the sails, the rigging, the ship’s ladders, 
are all covered with ice, and consequently be¬ 
come entirely unmanageable. At four o’clock in 
the afternoon the storm had almost subsided, 
but it was followed by extremely cold weather, 
which continued for more than eight days. This 
new but unwelcome guest was also to be added to 
our maritime miseries; the increase of our wants 
also increased the occasions for Father Giesen ta 
exercise the zeal of his active charity. We could 
not succeed in lighting a fire; the stove smok¬ 
ed continually. Seeing us in this predicament. 


3 o 8 


Appendix. 


good Father Giesen brought out all the resources 
of his inventive mind in order to succeed ; and 
after a thousand physical, chemical, and atmos¬ 
pherical experiments, he succeeded so well that 
Father Bernard engaged him to write a treat¬ 
ise on the manner of lighting a fire. It matters 
very little how, but at last we had a warm 
stove. We all laughed; but then, too, we all 
warmed ourselves. 

After the frost, snow, rain, and hail; after calm) 
rocks, apd storms, we thought we had well-nigh 
emptied the cup of marine vicissitudes. We were 
now only about six hundred miles from New 
York, and drawing near the sand-banks that bor¬ 
der on the shores of America. We were confi¬ 
dent, of arriving there soon without encountering 
further dangers. But once more did we vainly 
flatter ourselves with deceitful hopes. An enemy 
far more formidable than the coasts of England 
awaited us: on the morning of the seventh we 
suddenly found ourselves in the midst of ice¬ 
bergs. It was a thing unheard of at this season 
of the year; they are never seen in these lati¬ 
tudes except in the months of May and June. 
The idea which I had formed of these gigantic 


Appendix. 


30Q 


masses was far below the reality. ' The first ice¬ 
berg we perceived appeared like a formidable 
giant, although it was distant from us more than 
six geographical miles. The dazzling whiteness 
of its rugged summit was reflected in a beautiful 
manner on the azure background of the horizon. 
It rose to a height of more than eighty feet 
above the water, and its base was more than one 
hundred and twenty feet in diameter; it might 
have been called a church of enormous size. 
The jagged sides of these floating mountains are 
sometimes furrowed by narrow but very deep 
fissures, similar to a rock cleft asunder by a 
thunderbolt. The rays of the sun are doubly 
magnificent when reflected in a mirror of this 
sort. However, these beautiful children of the 
north, • wonderful though they be, were rather 
uncomfortable neighbors, and might at any mo¬ 
ment become disastrous to us. In a short time 
we saw ourselves surrounded by them, and were 
forced to depart from our desirable course for 
more than four hours. This tacking of the ship 
extricated us from the danger for the moment ; 
but on the next day we came up with icebergs 
still more numerous than those of the evening 


310 


Appendix, 


previous. But the finger of God, wno protected 
us, had marked out for them the bounds which 
they were not to overstep. An opening was left 
in the middle, and we were enabled to continue 
our route until late at night without any notable 
accident. On the ninth of March we were out of 
their reach. In passing the shores of Newfound¬ 
land, which are near the American coast, we 
saw a large flock of marine ducks, that plunged 
into the water with remarkable dexterity, and 
reappeared only after twenty or thirty minutes. 

A large flock of European swallows, which 
had escorted the vessel until the 1st of March, 
was now replaced by a legion of American 
swallows. 

We were advancing continually; but from 
the time we left the icebergs the change in the 
temperature was truly singular. Such a strange 
alternation of good and bad weather took place 
every instant that we could no more rely on fair 
wind whenever we had it than despair when¬ 
ever it was unfavorable. The sailors, and 
above all the naval officers, whose supersti¬ 
tion or impiety increases in proportion to their 
good or ill success, could not help attributing 


Appendix. 


311 

all the difficulties and misfortunes of the voy¬ 
age to our presence on the vessel. It is a 
generally-accepted proverb among sailors that 
the presence of priests and women always 
proves disadvantageous to their voyages. And, 
in fact, the young American of whom I spoke 
in the beginning informed us of this on the 
very first day. “ We will have a bad voyage,” 
he said to us, without intending the compli¬ 
ment ; “ we will have a long and perilous voy¬ 
age, because the devil will set heaven and the 
ocean in motion in order to prevent us from 
arriving in due time.” Father de Landtsheer, 
moreover, assured us that this conviction is so 
strong in the minds of Englishmen that, for 
this reason alone, they often refuse to take 
Catholic priests on board. We did not require 
this assurance, because what passed under our 
own eyes was a convincing proof of the fact. 
The second mate asserted that there was a 
Jonas on the vessel, who ought to be thrown 
overboard. The boatswain himself went still 
further, and with a mien partly jocose, partly 
serious, said that this Jonas could be none 
other than that big, merry fellow who walked 


312 


Appendix. 


to and fro on deck during the night like a 
ghost. This was no one else than good Father 
Giesen—the scape-goat of Israel amongst us, 
Jonas among the sailors! The boatswain also 
affirmed that whenever Father Giesen looked at 
the compass, the wind was changed, however 
fair it might be at the time. He was so 
firmly convinced of this that he actually hid 
the needle in order to conceal it from the gaze 
of Jonas. How much must not be believed 
if a man does not wish to -believe what ought 
to be believed! Notwithstanding his super¬ 
stition, this good man was not indifferent in 
matters of religion. ide sought for the truth 
in all sincerity; he conversed several times 
with Father Hecker, who left him in a fair 
way of being converted to the Catholic faith. 
But although Jonas no longer looked at the 
compass, the state of affairs remained unchang¬ 
ed. At length, on the 15th, the wind blew 
steadily from the northeast. It gently wafted 
us towards the west, when, at ten A.M., we per¬ 
ceived, at a distance of more than four miles, 
an English vessel sailing in the same direc¬ 
tion. She reached us at four in the afternoon. 


Appendix, 


3^3 


All the passengers thronged to the deck. It 
was generally thought that she came to ask for 
provisions; but all were deceived. The cap¬ 
tain of the vessel and his discouraged sailors 
simply sought the’ consolation of communicat¬ 
ing to their brother sailors their reverses and 
misfortunes. They had left London on the 
2 ist of December, bound for Boston, and it 
was already the eighty-fourth day they were 
sailing about on the ocean, which was stormy 
all of this time. The news of such a disaster 
was unquestionably calculated to console us, 
and caused us to render fervent thanks to God 
for the special protection with which he had 
favored us. I may be Excused for remarking 
en passant that this vessel had neither priests 
nor women on board ; she was a merchant ship. 
. , . After this interview, which was sad 

and at the same time cheering, we retired to 
our convejit with more courage and hope , but 
it would seem that heaven had granted us this 
respite only to prepare us for another trial. 
The next morning, at four o’clock, a storm 
burst upon our heads, and the lightning rent 
the sky. Happily, it was not of long duration. 


314 


Appendix. 


The gathering clouds were quickly dispersed, and 
a heavy rain restored peace to nature. On 
the same day, at eleven P.M., a second storm, 
as pacific as the first, arose, and was dispelled 
in the same way. Time passed on ; we made 
scarcely any progress, and the store of pro¬ 
visions was fast being consumed. Several 
emigrant families had exhausted their stock 
eight days before; the sailors were in want 
of tobacco, their second soul after whiskey; it 
was a long time since we last saw any fruit ; 
the supply of sugar failed ; and on the i6th 
we were told that there was no more butter. 
There was only a small quantity of meat left, and 
we were still more thanTour hundred miles from 
New York. With all this, the Feast of Saint 
Joseph was at hand ; the wind was sluggish, 
and it is said that even the best sailing vessel 
never makes more than twelve knots an hour. 
A kind of miracle was required to bring us to 
port by Wednesday. Our confidence was en¬ 
tirely gone, when, contrary to all expectation, a 
fair wind sprang up on the night of the i6th. 
On the 17th we were sailing at the rate of 
nine or ten knots an hour. If the wind would 


Appendix, 


315 


be steady for twenty-four hours more we 
would land in New York at the end of that 
time. We did not dare to raise our hopes to 
such a height, because past experience had 
taught us to be more moderate in our expec¬ 
tations. But our holy Protector had taken our 
cause into his hands. On the i8th the wind 
became so violent that it was found necessary 
to furl the sails. It was feared that we would 
arrive too soon, and the captain dreaded to 
enter the harbor at night. But all his efforts 
to slacken the impetuous course of the ship 
were unavailing; and with only one half-sail 
we progressed more rapidly than we did be¬ 
fore with sixteen or eighteen sail spread. On 
the morning of the 19th the fair wind had 
died out; but we now beheld the shores and 
the mountains of the New World, lit up in the 
distance by the first rays of the rising sun. At 
the sight of this blessed land, to which we had 
been anxiously looking forward for fifty-two 
days, for the sake of which we had undergone 
all the dangers of the sea, an unspeakable feel¬ 
ing of gratitude and joy took possession of our 
hearts. We were near the end of what is called 


3i6 


Appendix. 


the great sacrifice, the prelude of so many 
others, that will be much longer, more painful, 
but at the same time more meritorious; and 
in the strength which God gave us to make the 
first we discerned a certain pledge of the suc¬ 
cor which he will not fail to give us to ac¬ 
complish the other sacrifices. Such are the 
ways of the God of mercy and of love towards 
men. He lowers himself to such a degree as 
to ask their consent, and then does all himself. 

Everything w^as propitious to us on the day 
chosen by Saint Joseph to lead us into port. 
The weather was magnificent; the sun, the 
clouds, the azure sky, never appeared to me so 
beautiful in Europe. VVe spent almost the entire 
day on deck, in order to contemplate at leisure, 
or rather to devour with our eyes, the shores, 
smiling with the verdure of spring, and the hills, 
covered from base to summit with dense forests. 
We were gently moving towards New York, 
when the falling shades of night compelled us 
to cast anchor at the entrance to the harbor. 

At dawn of the following day the anchor was 
weighed ; all the sails were spread, and under a 
serene sky we entered the immense basin called 


Appendix. 


317 


the Lower Bay. By one o’clock we arrived at 
the interior harbor. Here the wind opposed our 
course, and we were once more obliged to cast 
anchor to await the coming of a tug-boat. This 
circumstance caused a kind of revolt to break out 
among the emigrants. They longed to be in 
New York, and sought an occasion for mutiny 
under pretext of the want of provisions. They 
even signed a paper, by which they pledged 
themselves to throw the captain overboard, for 
having refused to accept the services of a tug 
early in the morning. The Garibaldians were at 
the head of the plot, and were agreed among 
themselves that all the cur6s of the first cabin 
should be added to. the list of their intended vic¬ 
tims. More than fifty of the mutineers had col¬ 
lected on the deck, awaiting the captain, when 
the boatswain came up to them. He ordered 
them to retire; instead of replying, they seized 
him by the throat, and would have thrown him 
into the sea, if his truly herculean strength and 
vigorous courage had not delivered him from 
their grasp. He seized a pulley lying close at 
hand, and with the first blow caused the blood 
of a Swiss who had attacked him to gush forth. 


Appendix, 


318 

Upon seeing this the rest of the cowardly band 
beat a precipitate retreat. A steamer, which 
came to take us in tow, re-established peace and 
order. Under the rays of a most beautiful sun, 
at two o’clock, we entered the interior harbor. 
But here, my brothers, I invite those of you 
who would wish to form an idea of this magnifi¬ 
cent panorama to come and behold with your 
own eyes. It is impossible to describe the three 
great cities, the numberless and crowded houses 
of which adorn the three eminences formed by 
two large rivers, down to the border of the sea. 
The two rivers themselves, that might be taken 
for floating forests, surpass all conception, and 
present a picture of activity and industry which 
my feeble pen would in vain attempt to sketch. 
At four o’clock we arrived at Quarantine, where 
the physician who inspected the vessel informed 
us of the arrival of two of our confreres. Father 
Joseph Muller, Rector at New York, and Father 
Minister. They were transported with greater 
joy at seeing us than we at our safe arrival; 
they had given us up for lost. All the vessels 
that had left .from Havre eight, ten, and even 
fifteen days after us had been already in the 


Appendix. 


319 


harbor, and the Helvetia had not made her ap¬ 
pearance ! The good fathers were in dread lest 
another evil had befallen us, not less fatal than 
shipwreck—that is, typhoid fever. Only a few 
days before this terrible disease suddenly 
broke out among the passengers of an English 
vessel that had sailed from Liverpool. Ca¬ 
lamities of this kind were well calculated to 
convince us of the special protection with which 
God had favored us during our tedious voyage. 
Father Bernard did not cease to repeat that, con¬ 
sidering the rough season, our voyage had been 
a prosperous, nay, a very prosperous, one. Now, 
my brothers, having asked you to pray for us, 
we also beg you to say a prayer of thanksgiving, 
in order to aid us to liquidate our debts to 
God. . . . Just as we were leaving Quaran¬ 

tine we saw a small steamer apparently coming 
towards us. It soon reached us; there were on 
it our old friend McMaster and the two bro¬ 
thers of Father Hecker, who, having received 
intelligence by telegraph of our arrival, had en¬ 
gaged a steamer to accompany us. At length 
we reached the end of our pilgrimage. At half¬ 
past five o’clock in the evening we disembarked, 


320 


Appendix. 


and Providence decreed that, without my know¬ 
ledge, I should be the first to place my foot 
on American soil. We joyfully quitted the 
Helvetia^ which, like ourselves, had now cross¬ 
ed the Atlantic for the first time. May it 
please God frequently to people with evangeli¬ 
cal laborers the little rooms which w^e were the 
first to occupy, and converted by us, so to 
speak, into so many little cloisters! May the 
image of our good Mother Mary which we 
placed on the wall frequently receive the hom¬ 
age of the hearts whom she will have engaged 
to devote themselves to the salvation of aban¬ 
doned souls ! We had to pass through almost 
the entire length of New York before arriving 
at the convent of our fathers. Let it suffice 
for me to tell you the observance which I have 
found here far exceeded my most sanguine ex¬ 
pectations. The community of New York is a 
little Wittem in point of regularity. I will say 
nothing of the piety of Americans, since I have 
not as 'yet been able to become acquainted with 
it; but yesterday the church was filled almost 
entirely in the morning, and entirely so at 
the evening sermon. The concourse of people 


Appendix, 


321 


greatly affected me, and, being penetrated with 
a lively sentiment of gratffude for my precious 
vocation, I cannot refrain from exclaiming with 
the . holy King David : Ftmes cecidertmt mihi 
m praeclaris; etenim haereditas me a praeclara 
est mihi! . . . We remain here at present, 
awaiting our destination. Father Bernard will 
leave this evening for Baltimore, and take with 
him the two novices and Father Stiessberger. 
Father Hecker will probably remain in New 
York; it is believed that the house of studies 
will be in Cumberland. 

Such, my dear brothers in Jesus Christ, are 
the lines dictated to me by charity, which your 
kindness will have the patience to read. It is 
not necessary for me to crave your indulgence 
for the style of a letter written at sea, and often¬ 
times during the storms. I must reserve my ex¬ 
cuses for an object more worthy of my regrets 
and your indulgent charity. I profit by this first 
occasion to ask of all my confreres in general, 
and of my venerated superiors in particular, par-^ 
don for the frequent failings of which I was 
guilty towards them during the seven years in 
which I enjoyed their inappreciable favors. I 


322 


Appendix, 


thank each and every one of them from the bot¬ 
tom of my heart. I thank you most especially, 
Rev. Father Rector and Father Prefect, for the 
unceasing care you took of my own poor self. 
. . . If, then, my dearest brothers, whom I 

embrace at this moment, after having received 
so many favors at Wittem, I am still permitted 
to ask for more, ask of Jesus and of Mary, for 
myself and my companions, that we may never 
be of the number of those unfortunate ones 
who, after having crossed the seas, labor much, 
but neglect themselves, and at the hour of death 
find their hands void of virtues and merits. 

Feeling assured that you will not refuse this 
petition of charity, I remain for ever, Very Rev¬ 
erend Father and dear confreres in the Sacred 
Hearts of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and Alphonsus, 
your most affectionate and devoted servant and 
brother, 

L. M. Bold, C.SS.R. 

Dear Father Rector: As you see from the 
enclosed letter, our young men are at the height 
of joy. I alone prove an exception. Scarcely 
had I landed when a letter was handed to me. 


A ppendix. 


323 


announcing the death of my good mother, which 
took place on the third day after my departure 
from Havre, at the precise moment when my 
own life was endangered. Imagine my feelings. 
. . . Well, God has willed it. I adore his 

holy will, and bow to it in silence. I beg your 
reverence not to forget this beloved mother, 
and to recommend her soul to the pious remem¬ 
brances of your community. She was truly a 
benefactress of our Congregation. Adieu, dear 
father. Pray for your devoted 

Father Bernard. 


New York March 22, 1851. 







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THE CATHOLIC PUBLICATION SOCIETY, 

LAWRENCE KEHOE, General Agent, 


No. 9 Warren Street, New York. 





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